Airline News

Passengers get new flights after Virgin delays. Virgin Blue has been forced to reschedule thousands of passengers booked over the Christmas-New Year period after it delayed the launch of its long-haul carrier, V Australia, by three months.

As foreshadowed in the Herald last week, V Australia's plans to begin flying between Sydney and Los Angeles on December 15 have been postponed until February 28 because of likely delays to the delivery of its first three aircraft due to a strike in the US.

smh.com.au

Labels: strike, V Australia

A strike over wages by ground crew and cabin staff at Deutsche Lufthansa is expected to cause disruptions at Germany's 10 largest airports on Monday after a key union voted overwhelmingly to walk off the job.

The Verdi union, which represents 52,000 air industry workers, planned to start the strikes at midnight (2200 GMT) - but would not reveal in advance where the walkouts would happen to prevent the airline from making plans to thwart the impact.

Union officials said that the unlimited strike, the first in 13 years at Lufthansa, would affect all areas - from catering and cargo to maintenance and repair staff. Some 91 percent of union members voted to strike, Verdi said on Friday.

"The starting times will be staggered," said Verdi's chief negotiator Erhard Ott. Frankfurt, Munich, Berlin, Hamburg, Duesseldorf, Stuttgart, Nuremberg, Hanover, Leipzig and Bremen airports would be affected, the union said.

Verdi, which has lost influence since the last Lufthansa strike in 1994, wants a 9.8-percent pay increase for one year. Lufthansa, Europe's second biggest airline by passenger numbers, is offering 6.7 percent over 21 months and a one-off payment.

Lufthansa has said it will have to see where the strikes happen before deciding how many domestic and international flights will be cancelled. It has said it hopes to juggle non-striking staff to limit the impact of the strike.

In view of heavy criticism from political and industry leaders, the union is expected to stop well short of an all-out walk out on Monday and instead opt for targeted strikes.

Verdi would be ready to restart talks if Lufthansa improved its offer, Ott said. Their wage talks broke down on July 10.

"We've got to do everything we can to prevent this strike," said Klaus Lippold, a member of parliament and transport expert for the Christian Democrats. "Not only to save the holiday season but to prevent damage to Germany's air travel industry."

Rainer Wend, an economy expert in parliament for the Social Democrats, also spoke out against the strike.

"Even though one must accept a strike being a tool in a labour dispute, it's still unfortunate that innocent bystanders and holiday travellers will be hurt by the strike more than the union's opponents," Wend told Welt am Sonntag newspaper.

Earlier this week, Lufthansa cancelled almost 1,000 regional flights at its Eurowings and CityLine subsidiaries after pilots walked out in a separate pay dispute.

At a time when Europe's biggest economy is seeing a spike in inflation, several labour unions are seeking bigger wage deals after restraint in recent years.

Source: uk.reuters.com

Labels: lufthansa, strike

Industrial action planned by about 1,700 Qantas engineers could throw new year holiday plans into disarray for thousands of Australian travellers.

au.news.yahoo.com (page not found)

Labels: Qantas, strike

Air France flights were disrupted for a fourth day Sunday with striking flight attendants refusing to give in and the transport minister asking for both sides to restart talks.

nytimes.com

Labels: Air France, strike

A strike by TAP Air Portugal pilots grounded almost all the national airline's flights Tuesday.

nytimes.com

Labels: strike, tap air portugal

The head of American Airlines' pilots union threatened to see American's CEO "on the picket line" and in court after the carrier's management have failed to meet the union's demand for a bigger share of the company's profits.

marketwatch.com

Labels: american airlines, strike

QantasLink pilots in Western Australia are considering industrial action because their employer is refusing to negotiate a collective employment agreement.

au.news.yahoo.com (page not found)

Labels: qantaslink, strike

The planned strike by nearly 500 pilots at Aer Lingus is set to go ahead next week after attempts to convene talks to resolve the dispute ended unsuccessfully last night.

Source: irishtimes.com

Labels: Aer Lingus, strike

Thousands of aviation workers voted in favor of a strike over a pay dispute with national carrier Turkish Airlines, the company said Thursday.

nytimes.com

Labels: strike, turkish airlines

Flights by national carrier Olympic Airlines were delayed by up to two hours Friday, following industrial action by the company's pilots, the airline and Athens International Airport said.

nytimes.com

Labels: athens, olympic airlines, strike

A Turkish airline workers' union has rejected an offer by Turkish Airlines for talks aimed at avoiding a strike, the airline said on Friday.

reuters.com

Labels: strike, turkish airlines

Thousands of Indian Airlines employees wanting better wages and career prospects have begun an indefinite strike.

bbc.co.uk

Labels: employees, indian airlines, strike

Strike action has caused Scandinavian Airlines to cancel most of its Tuesday flights to and from Sweden.

bbc.co.uk

Labels: SAS, Scandinavian Airlines, strike

A strike by Italian air traffic controllers and Alitalia flight attendants has left thousands of travelers stranded and hundreds of domestic and international flights cancelled.

cnn.com (page not found)

Labels: Alitalia, Italy, strike

British Airways cabin crew are reportedly furious over what they see as the failure of union negotiators to extract sufficient concessions from the airline's management.

independent.co.uk

Labels: British Airways, strike, union

British Airways have agreed to an inflation-busting pay rise for its cabin crew to avoid strike action, which may be causing concerns at the Bank of England whose Governor last week warned pay negotiators against seeking 'self-defeating' wage increases.

independent.co.uk

Labels: Bank of England, British Airways, strike

A 48-hour strike by British Airways cabin crew planned for Tuesday and Wednesday has been called off with BA and the Transport & General Workers Union agreeing to a settlement.

timesonline.co.uk (page not found)

Labels: British Airways, strike, union

The outcome of last ditch talks between British Airways chief executive Willie Walsh and Transport & General Workers Union boss Tony Woodley will be revealed on Friday morning.

bbc.co.uk

Labels: British Airways, strike, union

No British Airways passengers will be able to fly out of Heathrow from 12.01am Tuesday January 30 to 11.59pm Wednesday January 31, with BA canceling 1300 flights after talks to avert strike action failed.

timesonline.co.uk (page not found)

Labels: British Airways, Heathrow, strike

Up to 11 000 British Airways cabin crew workers will stage a three-day strike after negotiations with BA management broke down.

independent.co.uk

Labels: British Airways, dispute, strike

British Airways employees have voted in favor of strike action in a dispute over sick leave, pay and staffing.

bbc.co.uk

Labels: British Airways, employees, strike

British Airways' pension deficit row is still unresolved, and with staff angry at the 'imposition' of new working terms the airline faces potential strike action in the coming weeks.

timesonline.co.uk (page not found)

Labels: British Airways, pension, strike