Holidaymakers flying to Spain were expecting more misery today as pilots with Spanish airline Iberia went on strike.

The 24-hour stoppage comes as airline schedules were finally getting back to normal after knock-on problems caused by the three-day coach drivers' strike on the Balearic Islands.

Services to Majorca, Menorca and Ibiza, as well as some to mainland Spain, Cyprus and Greece, were severely delayed after the coach strike put aircraft and crews in the wrong locations.

Last night, one Airtours flight from Gatwick to Palma, Majorca, finally took off 45 hours after its scheduled departure time.

The 300 passengers spent two nights in hotels near Gatwick and were entitled to a full refund or help with booking another holiday, an Airtours spokesman said.

A Gatwick spokesman said: "People were fed up and disappointed that they could not start their holidays but we and the airlines did everything we could to ease the situation. I think people realised it was out of our hands."

The airport was reporting delays of up to eight hours on remaining flights to the Balearics last night but a spokesman said the situation should return to normal today.

Iberia has already cancelled 23 per cent of 1,019 flights scheduled for today.

The airline's pilots are demanding an end to a six-year pay freeze. They have called strikes for every Tuesday in July and each Monday in August.

The airline and unions are due to meet tomorrow.