Passengers flying to Europe from Birmingham Airport were facing further disruption today after flights were grounded due to strikes by airline staff in France.

A total of eight flights, including three Ryanair flights, were cancelled including one departure to Ibiza due to leave at 7.25am today and a flight to Murcia in Spain at 1.10pm.

A further Ryanair arrival, due in from Ibiza at 2.15pm, was also grounded.

Flights from East Midlands, Liverpool and Dublin were also affected.

Weeks of protests in France over the plan to raise the retirement age from 60 to 62 had been tapering off, but airlines were facing new disruption because of today’s demonstrations.

A third of flights at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris have been cancelled and half of those at the smaller Paris-Orly Airport were called off.

Yesterday parliament granted final approval to conservative President Nicolas Sarkozy’s retirement reform.

But protesters have not given up the fight because Mr Sarkozy has not yet signed the bill.

Meanwhile Ryanair bosses today called for the European Commission to remove the right to strike for essential services, after being forced to cancel more than 200 flights across the country today.