I suspected as much. Sometimes they do get called off or don't get the support they need to get off the ground, but a real sciopero nationale can be a real pain, especially if it happens on a day when you are arriving or leaving. I remember once arriving on a flight to Fiumicino back in the early 80s during a general strike. The plane couldn't land at Fiumicino because it was closed and we ended up at Ciampino, which at that time was smaller than it is today. There was a single lone passport and customs agent who just waved at everyone as they went by. Once outside, there was absolutely no ground transportation. No city busses, no taxis, nothing. Fortunately, a tour bus was dropping off a charter group for their flight and I negotiated with the driver, being the only person out front at that point who spoke Italian, to load his bus with frustrated passengers and take them into the city. Since many did not have any lire on them, I paid the driver and took dollars in exchange, admittedly at an exchange rate which was favorable to me. It worked out ok in the end, but I learned a valuable lesson. Never travel without cash, preferably in the currency of the country. You never know when there is going to be something unexpected where cash becomes a necessity.