One of Paris' major airports has announced that 3,000 flights will either be cancelled or transferred to a different airport as it prepares to close a runway for repairs for four months.

Runway 4 will be closed for repairs between August and December at Paris Orly airport, bringing major disruption to the airport's schedule.

The Aéroports de Paris group, which manages the airport, announced the closure on Friday and added that 3,000 flights "will be cancelled or diverted to Paris Charles de Gaulle airport".

At this stage it is not clear what percentage of flights will be cancelled, and the airport managers said they are working with the French civil aviation authority to manage the transition.

Budget airline easyJet, whose flights represent a significant portion of the airport's traffic, said: "Like all airlines operating at Paris-Orly Airport, we have been asked to cancel flights during this period."