Twelve air traffic controllers at four Norwegian airports walked off the job at 11:00 on Friday after mediation between their union and employer group Spekter broke down without agreement, triggering delays and cancellations at Oslo Gardermoen and Bergen Flesland.
The Norwegian Air Traffic Controllers Association rejected a 4.4 percent pay offer aligned with industrial-sector benchmarks, saying the dispute centres on working conditions including break schedules, life-stage provisions and instructor frameworks rather than wages. The initial strike covers units at Røyken control centre, Flesland, Gardermoen and Stavanger. Avinor Air Navigation Services warned that Gardermoen could close entirely to traffic for five hours on Sunday morning, from 06:30 to 11:30.
Norwegian has advised passengers to arrive at airports as scheduled, while SAS urged both sides to return to negotiations. The government retains authority to intervene with compulsory arbitration if the stoppage threatens life or health.