Italy Strikes: Rail on 30 October, Air Traffic on 21 November

Two national strikes are on the Italian calendar this autumn, and both touch travellers arriving in Italy or moving between cities. Trains may stop for up to 24 hours from 21:00 on Thursday 29 October, and air traffic controllers have called a four-hour stoppage from 13:00 to 17:00 on Saturday 21 November. If you land in that window, expect delays or cancellations and plan your ground transfer with margin.

What is scheduled

30 October: general strike including rail

The union USB has called a general strike of public and private sectors for Friday 30 October. For rail staff it runs from 21:00 on Thursday 29 October to 20:59 on Friday 30 October, according to the strike data of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport as reported by ScioperiItalia and the Italian press. High-speed, Intercity and regional services can all be affected. Regional trains keep guaranteed bands from 06:00 to 09:00 and from 18:00 to 21:00 on weekdays, and Trenitalia and Italo publish their own lists of guaranteed long-distance trains.

The ministry calendar also lists air transport for the whole day. Lentepubblica notes that the Italian civil aviation authority, ENAC, normally sets a strike-free period around the 1 November holiday, so the real effect on flights is unclear. Check with your airline in the days before you travel.

21 November: air traffic control

Filt-Cgil and UGL Trasporto Aereo have called a four-hour national strike of ENAV staff, the company that manages civil air traffic control in Italy, from 13:00 to 17:00 on Saturday 21 November. It can affect departures and arrivals at airports across the country, including Catania Airport and Palermo. ENAC publishes the flights protected during strikes, and your airline will confirm the status of yours.

The same weekend a national rail strike called by CUB Trasporti and SGB Ferrovie runs from 21:00 on Friday 20 November to 20:00 on Saturday 21 November.

Local actions to note

Two further airport actions are listed for Sunday 22 November: an ENAV strike at Milan Malpensa for the whole day, and a strike of security staff employed by Sicuritalia IVRI at Venice Marco Polo. Local actions are sometimes revoked or postponed, so verify with the airport operator closer to the date.

What this means for your transfer

A flight that leaves late, or lands at a different airport, changes the whole plan on the ground. Three things help.

First, share your flight number when you book, not only the scheduled time. A chauffeur service that tracks the flight can follow a delay without a call from you.

Second, if you arrive in Sicily on 21 November, keep the afternoon flexible. A flight scheduled to land between 13:00 and 17:00 is the one most likely to move. Diversions within Sicily follow the same logic described in our guide to Catania Airport closures: if your flight lands at Palermo or Comiso instead, the transfer can be reassigned to the new airport, subject to availability.

Third, if your plan relied on a train between two cities on 30 October, consider moving the date or booking that leg by road. For a day of meetings or several stops, an hourly chauffeur keeps the car with you between appointments.

What we do not know yet

Strikes in Italy are often revoked, reduced or postponed in the final days, and the level of participation is only clear on the day itself. The details in this article come from the official calendar and from press reports published on 19 October 2026. Verify with the operator before you travel.

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