Why did the strike end so fast?
On 23 September, Icelandair’s mechanics walked off the job after pay talks broke down. Dozens of flights were cancelled due to the strike — but by midday, the airline and the union had already agreed to a new round of talks, because neither side wanted a longer stoppage.
Notice the two bolded words above: they both introduce a cause, but they don’t work the same way. Due to sits directly in front of a noun or noun phrase. Because introduces a full clause — its own subject and verb. Mixing the two up is one of the most common errors even confident English users make.
‘Due to’ vs ‘because’ — what’s the difference?
due to + noun phrase
Example: “The strike ended due to a last-minute agreement.”
because + subject + verb
Example: “The strike ended because the two sides reached an agreement.”
The test is simple: look at what comes right after the word. If it’s a thing (a noun, or a noun with describing words — “months of failed pay talks”, “the mediator’s proposal”), use due to. If it’s a mini-sentence with its own subject and verb (“the mediator arrived”, “travel has recovered”), use because.
Watch out for these mistakes. A very common error is putting due to in front of a full clause: “Flights were cancelled due to the mechanics walked off the job.” ✗ That’s wrong, because “the mechanics walked off the job” has its own subject and verb — it needs because instead: ✓ “Flights were cancelled because the mechanics walked off the job.” If you want to keep the noun-phrase version, add “of”: ✓ “Flights were cancelled because of the mechanics’ walkout.” So there are really three tools, not two — due to and because of both take a noun phrase; only because takes a full clause.
Try these
Read what comes after the gap before you choose. Is it a noun phrase, or a mini-sentence with its own subject and verb?
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The union voted for a strike ______ months of failed pay talks.
“Due to” is followed directly by a noun phrase (“months of failed pay talks”), with no separate subject or verb of its own.
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Icelandair’s afternoon flights ran on schedule again ______ the two sides had reached a deal.
“The two sides had reached a deal” has its own subject (“the two sides”) and verb (“had reached”), so it needs “because”, not “due to”.
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The union says its members deserve equal pay ______ workers at other airlines now earn more for similar jobs.
“Workers at other airlines” looks like it could be a noun phrase, but it’s really the subject of a full clause (“…now earn more for similar jobs”), so “because” is needed.
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The mechanics’ union signed a contract with pay concessions ______ the airline needed help surviving the pandemic.
A subject (“the airline”) and a verb (“needed”) follow, so this needs “because”, not “due to”.
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A single strike at Keflavík quickly disrupts travel across the region, ______ the airport’s importance for connections.
“The airport’s importance for connections” is a noun phrase, so “due to” fits directly in front of it.
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True or false: “because” can be followed directly by a bare noun, as in “the flight was cancelled because the strike”.
That sentence is wrong. “Because” needs a full clause (“because the strike grounded the crew”). To use just a noun, you need “because of” (“because of the strike”) or “due to” (“due to the strike”).
Now make it real
Write one or two true sentences about your own flying or work, explaining something that actually happened — a delay, a diversion, a rostering change — using due to + a noun phrase, or because + a full clause.
- Does your sentence explain a real cause, not just restate what happened?
- If you used “due to”, does a noun phrase (not a full sentence) come right after it?
- If you used “because”, does a subject and a verb come right after it?
- Does your sentence start with a capital letter and end with a full stop?
- “My connecting flight was delayed due to a technical problem in Frankfurt.”
- “I had to reroute through Amsterdam because my original flight was cancelled.”
Now look at your sentence again — could you tighten the cause, or add one more detail, the way the samples do?
CEFR Level B1 / ICAO Level 4
For a different set of examples on the same contrast, drawn from a very different kind of aviation disruption, see our earlier ‘due to’ vs ‘because’ practice.
