The weather conditions will once again put travellers to the test on Wednesday 7 January, when 38 French départements have been placed under a vigilance orange for snow and ice. Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot made it official today at a press conference: because of the snow, French airports will have to adapt. Paris airports in particular will have to cut their schedules. 40% of flights will be cancelled at Paris CDG on Wednesday morning (between 9am and 2pm to be precise), and a quarter of operations (25%) at Paris Orly, from 6am to 2pm.
In addition, as indicated on Tuesday evening by the French Civil Aviation Authority (DGAC), air traffic at Nantes-Atlantique airport has been suspended since Monday 5 January 2026 and will remain suspended until Wednesday 7 January inclusive (when operations resume at around 2pm).
Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot summed it up on X on Tuesday evening: " Snowstorm: meeting today at the Ministry of Transport's crisis centre with the prefects of the areas concerned, government departments and transport operators. Ahead of the new episode expected on Wednesday 7 January, the watchwords remain the same: anticipation and coordination, informing users, making travel safer, etc. ".
Mass flight cancellations at KLM
The situation is also problematic in other European countries. KLM warned on Wednesday morning (10am) that more than 700 flights would be cancelled on 7 January. According to FlightRadar, KLM will have cancelled more than half its scheduled flights between Friday 2 January and tomorrow [Wednesday]:
- 2 January: 202 (28 %)
- 3 January: 294 (43 %)
- 4 January: 398 (57 %)
- 5 January: 463 (71 %)
- 6 January: 417 (64 %)
- 7 January: 600 (92 %)
Brussels airport warns: " Further snowfall is expected on 7 January. We are doing our utmost to minimise the impact, but delays in de-icing aircraft and clearing snow from runways are to be expected." .
