September 6, 2012

German flag-carrier Lufthansa said it would cancel two-thirds of its Friday flights after a cabin crew union announced a 24-hour stoppage late Wednesday at six major airports.

"We are canceling two-thirds of flights so that our customers can find alternatives. It is important that we inform them early enough," AFP quotes Lufthansa spokesman Michael Lamberty as saying. "We still hope that it's possible to avoid a strike and return to the negotiating table.”

The carrier has posted an advisory about the cancellations as being due to “UFO strike actions” informing travelers both in English and German.

The Independent Flight Attendants' Organization (UFO) announced the strike a day after its members staged eight-hour walkouts at three key German airports in a dispute over pay and conditions.

The Friday strike is set to hit Frankfurt, Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Dusseldorf and Stuttgart, reads the statement on the union's website.

And is set to be much larger than that Tuesday’s stoppage. On a typical Friday, Lufthansa usually serves some 170,000 passengers.

About 600 flights are supposed to leave on schedule.

Some 43,000 Lufthansa customers were affected on Tuesday, when the union held strikes in Berlin, Frankfurt, and Munich, forcing 350 flights to be canceled. About 1,500 passengers were stranded overnight in Frankfurt and Munich, prompting the airline to set up cots to accommodate them.

Cabin crew members across Germany are protesting over their pay and conditions, demanding a 5 per cent increase in salaries from the company. They also insist on guarantees against outsourcing and the use of temporary employees.

In return, the air carrier has offered a 3.5 per cent salary increase in return for longer working hours – a deal the employees have refused.

RT.com