Lufthansa flights hit by strike
Pilots at Lufthansa are to take part in a strike affecting long-haul flights from Frankfurt tomorrow, resuming a campaign of targeted walkouts after contract talks broke down last week.
The Vereinigung Cockpit union said members on Lufthansa’s long-haul fleet will not fly from Frankfurt between 8am and 11pm local time tomorrow.
Lufthansa said it is cancelling 25 of the 57 intercontinental flights scheduled to depart Frankfurt on Tuesday. It said it expects 26 to go ahead as planned, while two departures will be moved forward and another four pushed back to Wednesday.
The airline added that flights from Munich, its number two hub, and Dusseldorf will not be affected.
The two sides are at odds over the pilots’ demand that Lufthansa keeps a transition payment for those wanting early retirement.
The airline, which faces tough competition from European budget airlines and major Gulf carriers, wants to cut those payments.
The union has staged several short-term strikes in recent weeks at Lufthansa and short-haul budget offshoot Germanwings. It says Lufthansa has not offered an acceptable compromise.
