Thousands of passengers across Europe are facing fresh travel turmoil after a new wave of disruptions hit services operated by KLM, Air France, easyJet and several partner airlines. According to operational data compiled for 7 February 2026, at least 200 flights were cancelled and a further 233 were delayed across major hubs and regional airports, with knock-on impacts rippling through Geneva, Berlin, Paris, Manchester and airports in Germany, the Netherlands, France, the United Kingdom and beyond. As carriers race to stabilize schedules, travelers are reporting long queues, missed connections and mounting uncertainty over their rights and options.
What Triggered the Latest Disruptions
The latest round of cancellations and delays is being linked to a convergence of winter-weather pressures, staffing constraints and lingering air-traffic-management issues that have plagued European skies since early January. Data from handling and compensation platforms show that 7 February, in particular, was marked by a sharp spike in disrupted services, with 16 cancellations and 217 delayed departures at Amsterdam Schiphol alone and broader network instability for KLM, Air France and easyJet across their European routes.
In France, operational statistics published for the same day point to 433 delays and 33 cancellations across six major airports, led by Paris Charles de Gaulle and Paris Orly, as dense fog, low cloud and a backlog from a previous air-traffic-control systems glitch forced airlines to slow movements and trim schedules. Air France recorded more than a hundred disrupted services in a single day, and low-cost carriers including easyJet also saw schedules fray on popular intra-European city pairs.
These fresh problems have landed on already fragile operations. In January, a powerful winter storm system had forced KLM to cancel hundreds of flights and delay many more at its Amsterdam hub, leaving aircraft and crews out of position. While airlines have since worked to restore normality, industry analysts say February’s renewed disruption shows how thin the margin remains between a manageable winter day and widespread chaos once weather and airspace constraints combine.
Airlines Most Affected: KLM, Air France and easyJet in the Spotlight
Within this broader pattern, three carriers stand out as bearing a disproportionate share of the pain: KLM, Air France and easyJet. At Amsterdam Schiphol on 7 February, KLM alone was responsible for the majority of disrupted flights, with operational tallies indicating more than a hundred delayed departures and a double-digit cancellation count concentrated on short-haul European services. The Dutch flag carrier’s tightly banked hub structure, which relies on rapid turnarounds and precise connection waves, left it especially exposed once weather and air-traffic restrictions eroded runway capacity.
In France, Air France shouldered the largest burden of disruption at Paris Charles de Gaulle and Orly, with more than one hundred flights delayed or cancelled in a single day across domestic and regional European networks. Routes linking the French capital with cities such as Nice, Lyon, Bordeaux, Geneva and Amsterdam saw some of the heaviest pressure, as aircraft waiting for departure slots at congested airports triggered late arrivals at the other end and eroded connection times for onward passengers.
EasyJet, meanwhile, found itself squeezed both at French airports and at satellite hubs such as Geneva and Berlin, where it is a major operator of leisure and visiting-friends-and-family routes. The carrier recorded at least nine delays linked to the Schiphol disruption alone, but the wider impact on its pan-European point-to-point network was far greater once diverted flights, crew duty-time limits and repositioning problems were taken into account. For passengers booked on tightly timed weekend breaks or ski trips, even a minor delay in one sector translated into a lost day on the ground.
Airports Under Strain: Geneva, Berlin, Paris and Manchester Hit Again
On the ground, some of the most acute passenger frustration has been felt at airports that have already endured repeated disruption episodes this winter. Geneva, a critical gateway for European ski traffic, was still recovering from a late-January technical failure in its air-traffic-control radar system that forced the temporary closure of the airport and mass diversions of inbound flights, many of them easyJet services from the United Kingdom. That incident left passengers bound for Geneva unexpectedly landing in Basel or Lyon, with buses laid on at short notice and luggage often arriving hours behind them.
As February’s wider regional disruption unfolded, Geneva again became a pressure point. Delayed arrivals from Paris, Amsterdam, Manchester and Berlin created bottlenecks as ground handling teams attempted to turn around aircraft for evening departures while dealing with full departure lounges and mounting rebooking requests. Passengers reported long waits for information at service desks and on airline hotlines, as staff struggled to keep up with fast-changing slot allocations.
In Germany, Berlin’s airports have been dealing with intermittent capacity constraints linked to winter conditions and airspace restrictions, which have combined with broader European network issues to delay KLM, Air France and easyJet rotations. Manchester, meanwhile, has seen repeated knock-on effects from problems at Paris and Amsterdam, with flights to the two hubs particularly vulnerable. When morning services depart late from northern England, feed for onward long-haul connections from France and the Netherlands is compromised, forcing airlines to rebook travelers on later departures from London, Frankfurt or other hubs.
How Today’s Situation Compares with January’s Extreme Events
While the latest disruption numbers are severe, aviation experts note that they are occurring against the backdrop of an unusually turbulent winter across Europe. In early January, a series of powerful storms battered the continent, culminating in a system that brought heavy snow and crosswinds to the Netherlands and shut down large parts of Amsterdam Schiphol’s capacity. On at least one day during that spell, KLM canceled roughly 30 percent of its schedule, with more than 300 flights scrapped and over 600 delayed, leading to scenes of overcrowded terminals and passengers advised not to travel to the airport unless absolutely necessary.
Elsewhere, the first week of January saw several hundred cancellations and delays across France and Germany as snowfall and ice closed runways, slowed de-icing operations and reduced visibility to levels that forced air-traffic-control authorities to extend spacing between takeoffs and landings. In that context, the 200 cancellations and 233 delays registered in the latest wave look less like an isolated crisis and more like a continuation of an extended period of stress for European aviation infrastructure, which is still grappling with post-pandemic staffing levels and maintenance backlogs.
Industry bodies warn that such repeated episodes are not just weather stories but also symptoms of structural fragility. Airlines have worked hard to rebuild capacity and profitability, trimming buffers in their schedules to maximize aircraft utilization at a time of high demand and constrained fleets. Air navigation service providers, meanwhile, continue to warn of staffing and systems challenges. When winter conditions or technical failures appear, these lean systems have little slack, and disruption spreads quickly.
Passenger Impact: Missed Connections, Stranded Families and Rising Costs
For travelers, the statistics translate into very human stories of stress and disruption. Over the weekend of the latest cancellations and delays, social-media posts and local media reports described families stranded overnight in unfamiliar cities, ski groups missing the first or last days of hard-earned holidays, and business travelers scrambling to salvage meetings as they watched connection windows evaporate. At hubs like Paris Charles de Gaulle and Amsterdam Schiphol, departure boards filled with yellow and red indicators, and queues formed at airline customer service counters well beyond their usual size.
Accommodation availability quickly became a pressing issue at several airports as hotel rooms near the terminals and in city centers were snapped up by displaced passengers and crew. Some travelers reported being offered vouchers that covered only part of their costs or being advised to arrange hotels independently and claim reimbursement later, a process that can be time-consuming and uncertain. Others turned to overnight buses and rail services from Paris, Amsterdam, Geneva and Berlin in order to make critical events in nearby cities rather than waiting for the next available flight.
The financial impact is multifaceted. While many passengers are entitled to care, refunds or compensation under European and UK regulations, not all disruptions qualify and not all customers are aware of their rights. At the same time, airlines face mounting costs for rebooking, crew repositioning, catering and hotel bills, all of which further strain budgets in what is traditionally a low-yield winter season. For low-cost carriers in particular, whose business models depend on tight cost control and rapid aircraft turnaround, repeated days of disruption can quickly erode profitability.
What Affected Passengers Can Do Now
With flights continuing to be adjusted as airlines work through backlogs, the most important step for passengers with upcoming travel on KLM, Air France, easyJet or their codeshare partners is to monitor their bookings closely. All three carriers are urging customers to check flight status and any schedule changes in their apps or on booking management pages before heading to the airport. Where weather or operational disruptions are forecast in advance, some airlines are issuing flexible rebooking policies that allow travelers to move trips to other dates or nearby airports at no extra charge.
For those whose flights have already been cancelled or delayed significantly, consumer advocates recommend first accepting any automatic rebooking offered, particularly on busy winter weekends when alternative seats are scarce. Once a new itinerary is secured, passengers can then explore whether they are eligible for refunds, travel vouchers or monetary compensation. Under European and UK passenger rights rules, travelers on flights to, from or within the region may be entitled to fixed-sum compensation if their arrival at the final destination is delayed by several hours for reasons within the airline’s control, or if services are cancelled at short notice.
It is crucial for travelers to keep documentation organized. Boarding passes, booking confirmations, receipts for meals, hotels and ground transport and any written communication from the airline can all be important when submitting a claim. Many passengers are now turning to specialized claim services to help navigate the process, although claims can also be filed directly with the airline. In cases where weather or air-traffic-control decisions are clearly the primary cause, carriers may argue that extraordinary circumstances apply, limiting their obligation to pay compensation, even if care duties such as meals and accommodation still stand.
How Airlines and Airports Are Responding
Faced with persistent operational headwinds, KLM, Air France and easyJet are taking a mix of short-term and medium-term steps. In the immediate term, airlines are adding extra staff in call centers, extending customer service opening hours and deploying additional agents at key airports to handle rebookings and assist vulnerable travelers. In some instances, carriers are proactively cutting back their schedules for coming days where forecasts show particularly challenging conditions at hubs such as Paris and Amsterdam, in an effort to create more buffer and avoid last-minute cancellations.
Airports are also responding by adjusting runway and gate allocation plans, prioritizing long-haul departures and heavily loaded hub-bank flights in order to protect as many passenger connections as possible. At Geneva, Berlin and Manchester, ground handling providers have been working to increase the availability of de-icing equipment and ramp staff during early-morning and late-evening peaks, where winter weather and crew duty-hour limits intersect most sharply. Some airports have opened additional waiting areas and information points during disruption peaks to reduce crowding at departure gates.
In parallel, airline alliances and joint ventures are leveraging their networks to offer more rerouting options. Passengers whose flights to Amsterdam or Paris have been cancelled are, in some cases, being redirected via other European hubs operated by partner airlines, including London and Frankfurt. While this can lengthen journeys, it at least preserves the possibility of reaching long-haul destinations within a day rather than facing multi-day delays.
Could More Disruption Be Ahead This Winter
Meteorologists and aviation planners caution that the winter travel season is far from over. Forecasts for the second half of February point to continued risk of snow, freezing fog and high winds across parts of northern and central Europe, all of which can curtail airport capacity and trigger new waves of operational strain. Already, airlines have issued advisories for potential disruptions at Paris airports linked to expected snowfalls, and air-navigation authorities have warned of localized congestion as they manage flows around weather systems and sensitive airspace.
For travelers, that means a heightened need for flexibility and contingency planning. Industry experts suggest building longer connection times into itineraries where possible, opting for earlier flights in the day that have a greater chance of being re-accommodated in case of disruption, and considering alternative routings or modes of transport on short-haul legs. Travel insurance that covers missed connections and additional accommodation, while not a cure-all, can offer a degree of financial protection when plans go awry.
What is clear is that the latest wave of cancellations and delays involving KLM, Air France and easyJet is not an isolated flare-up but part of a broader pattern of winter instability in European aviation. Until weather moderates and structural investments in staffing, systems and infrastructure fully catch up, passengers flying through Geneva, Berlin, Paris, Manchester and other key gateways should be prepared for the possibility that their journey may take longer, and be more complicated, than the ticket once promised.