WIRE:03/24/2000 06:51:00 ET Italian air traffic snarled by controller strike ROME, March 24 (Reuters) - An air traffic control strike severely disrupted Italian air traffic on Friday, scuttling more than 200 flights out of Milan and Rome, airport officials said. Some 201 flights out of Milan's Malpensa and Linate were cancelled by mid-morning, with further cancellations expected. In Rome, 49 flights were scrapped.

"It looks as if the situation will get worse during the course of the day," the company which runs Rome's airports, Aeroporti di Roma, said in a statement.

Both national and international flights were being targeted and Belgium's national carrier Sabena cancelled all its flights to Rome, Milan, Florence and Turin on Friday.

The disruption came despite a decision late on Thursday by the ENAV air traffic controllers union to call off a national strike planned for Friday.

Airport authorities said action by union members at a local level, pushing for a breakthrough in contract talks, was causing the problem.

The situation in Milan was further complicated by an eight-hour strike by ground personnel. "The disruption is very severe," Milan airports manager SEA said.

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-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), March 24, 2000