Planespotting won’t be possible during Friday, 26 July’s Olympic opening ceremony. French officials are restricting airspace in an 80 nautical mile radius around Paris, banning all flights during the ceremony. Restrictions begin to take effect at 15:30 UTC. From 16:00-21:30 UTC air traffic in the skies around Paris will completely cease.
Paris’ plane-free plan
The restrictions are being put into place in three phases. Phase 1 is the halting of arrivals to airports in the Paris area. This includes stopping arrivals to France’s two busiest airports, Charles de Gaulle and Orly. In total, eight airports are affected:
- LFPO | ORY Orly Airport
- LFPB | LBG Le Bourget Airport
- LFPG | CDG Charles de Gaulle Airport
- LFPN | TNF Paris-Saclay-Versailles Airport
- LFPM | QFM Melun Villaroche Airport
- LFPT | POX Pontoise Cormeilles Airport
- LFPL | XLG Lognes–Émerainville Aerodrome
- LFOB | BVA Beauvais-Tille Airport
Because of the restrictions Charles de Gaulle Airport has about 300 fewer flights scheduled for 26 July than the previous Friday (1,436/1,097). Orly has about 200 fewer flights scheduled (683/475).
Phase 2 will include the closure of the restricted area to all flights, including overflights from 16:00 UTC to 21:30 UTC. Based on Flightradar24 data from 19 July, the restrictions on Paris airports and overflights will affect a combined 2,200 flights. The most impacted airlines are Air France (264 flights), Ryanair (217), and easyJet (209).
Phase 3 allows departures at Charles de Gaulle to restart at 21:30, but continues to restrict all other flights until 22:15 when overflights and arrivals resume.
Visualizing the impact of restrictions
These are the 2,264 flights that passed through the 80NM exclusion zone on Friday, 19 July (one week prior to the opening ceremony). The flights include 891 flights operating to or from Charles de Gaulle and Orly.
Where will the flights go instead?
Airlines have already trimmed flight schedules to airports in Paris during the restricted period. For overflights, look to surrounding FIRs and sectors to handle as much traffic as possible, but delays and some lengthy re-routes are expected.
