Spain Airport Strikes Easter 2026: Groundforce and Menzies Workers Walk Out at Major Airports

Strikes at Spain's Major Airports — What's Happening

Travellers heading to Spain for Easter 2026 face a double disruption: ground-handling workers at some of the country's busiest airports are on strike, and the new EU Entry/Exit System (EES) biometric border checks are rolling out simultaneously.

The industrial action involves workers from two of Spain's largest airport ground-handling companies — Groundforce and Menzies — and is the result of ongoing salary disagreements. The timing, falling squarely across the Easter holiday period, could not be worse for the millions of travellers due to pass through Spanish airports in the coming days.

Which Airports Are Affected?

Groundforce operates at the following airports and its workers are taking strike action:

• Madrid-Barajas
• Barcelona-El Prat
• Palma de Mallorca
• Alicante-Elche
• Málaga-Costa del Sol
• Gran Canaria
• Valencia
• Ibiza
• Bilbao
• Lanzarote
• Fuerteventura

Menzies workers are also striking, affecting:

• Barcelona-El Prat
• Palma de Mallorca
• Málaga-Costa del Sol
• Alicante-Elche
• Gran Canaria
• Tenerife South
• Tenerife North

When Is the Action Taking Place?

The situation is fast-moving. The Groundforce strikes were originally scheduled to begin on Friday but were delayed. They are now expected to start on Monday 30 March, taking place in set time bands during mornings, afternoons and nights — and continuing indefinitely, with no confirmed end date and no indication of further suspensions.

The Menzies strikes were also suspended over the weekend, but 24-hour stoppages from April 2 to 6 have not been called off and remain in place as of now.

What Does This Mean in Practice?

Ground-handling covers everything that happens on the apron and in the terminal that isn't directly operated by the airline: baggage handling, aircraft marshalling, refuelling coordination, and passenger boarding support. When these services are disrupted, the most common effects are:

• Baggage delays — luggage taking significantly longer to reach the carousel on arrival
• Boarding delays — slower turnaround times on the apron leading to late departures
• Queuing at check-in and bag-drop — as reduced staffing creates bottlenecks

The stoppages are partial rather than full shutdowns, typically concentrated in specific time bands. This pattern mirrors earlier disputes at Madrid-Barajas, where limited ground handling action created bottlenecks at baggage reclaim and during boarding while flights continued to operate under minimum service rules.

For most travellers, the most likely impact is significant queuing and delays rather than outright cancellations. However, anyone with tight connections or onward transport should build in extra time.

The EES Factor: A Second Source of Delays

The strikes arrive at the same time as the continuing rollout of the EU's new Entry/Exit System (EES) — a biometric border check system that photographs and fingerprints all non-EU travellers at EU airports and border points. The system has been rolling out since October 2025 and is expected to be fully operational across all EU airports by April 10.

The Home Office and travel organisations are advising UK travellers to allow for potential queues of two to four hours at busier airports — on both arrival and departure. Reports have already emerged of serious delays: one traveller reported spending three hours in passport control at Tenerife airport, with her flight departing with only 15 passengers on board. Another described arriving at her departure gate in Paris to find a queue of 30 people with only one EES kiosk open and her flight's departure imminent.

The combination of ground-handling strikes and EES queuing makes Easter 2026 an unusually demanding travel period at Spanish airports.

Practical Advice

• Check your flight status regularly in the days before and on the day of travel — both with your airline and via the airport's own channels
• Arrive earlier than usual — if your airline or airport recommends a standard two-hour check-in, consider arriving three hours before departure during the strike period
• Allow extra time at passport control on arrival — particularly if this is your first entry into the Schengen Area since EES launched and you have not yet been biometrically registered
• If you are a resident in Spain, carry your TIE card or residency certificate — it exempts you from the full EES registration process
• If you have connecting flights or onward bookings, contact your carrier to understand what flexibility is available if delays cause you to miss a connection
• Travel insurance — check whether your policy covers strike-related disruption, including accommodation and rebooking costs if you are significantly delayed

This article is based on reporting from the Daily Mirror, published March 29, 2026, with additional information from Majorca Daily Bulletin and The Telegraph. The strike situation is evolving — always check the latest updates from your airline and airport before travelling. This article is for informational purposes only.