Europe’s skies descended into chaos at the end of 2025 as a wave of flight delays and cancellations turned the holiday travel season into a nightmare for hundreds of thousands of passengers.
In the final days of December, more than 1,900 flights across Europe were delayed or cancelled within a short period, affecting major airports from Sweden in the north to Portugal in the south, including France, Switzerland, Spain and the UK, according to Spain’s El Confidencial.
The disruption caused partial paralysis of air traffic, leaving thousands of travelers stranded in terminals or forced to change plans at the last minute.
Severe weather lay at the heart of the crisis. Europe was hit by successive winter storms, bringing heavy snowfall to northern and central regions, torrential rain and strong winds in the west and south, and freezing temperatures that led to icy runways and halted takeoffs and landings.
Aviation authorities imposed strict safety restrictions, further slowing operations.
However, the turmoil was not weather-related alone. The disruptions exposed ongoing operational fragility within Europe’s aviation sector, as airlines continue to struggle with pilot and cabin crew shortages and intense pressure on scheduling systems during the year’s busiest travel period.
Frustration mounted inside airports, with passengers complaining of poor communication and a lack of alternatives.
Many travelers were forced to cover extra costs for accommodation and transport, adding economic strain to the tourism and retail sectors during a critical season.
The end-of-year travel chaos has once again raised urgent questions about Europe’s preparedness for extreme weather and the resilience of its aviation infrastructure in the face of crises that now seem to return every winter.
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