The protest movement was also expected to spread to other EU countries, such as Austria, Belgium, Britain, Bulgaria and Italy over worries the plans will affect safety and working conditions.
Some 1,800 flights were cancelled in France today after the aviation watchdog asked airlines to cut their flights to and from Paris and other cities to avoid last-minute mayhem on the day of the strike.
"For the moment, the situation is calm in the two (Paris) airports but delays are to be expected during the day," said a spokesman for Aeroports de Paris, the company that runs the capital's two main airports.
The work stoppage is just one of the planned strikes in France this week, with railway workers due to stop work on Thursday, affecting train traffic, as are employees of the country's postal services.
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The air traffic controllers' main union, the SNCTA, called the three-day strike to denounce "the direct consequences on national policies of European constraints" on the sector.
Other unions that also represent air traffic controllers are planning to stop work tomorrow to protest against the "Single European Sky", which aims to bring the management and regulation of European airspace under EU control.