Lufthansa cancels nearly half of flights due to pilots strike

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Lufthansa cancels nearly half of flights due to pilots strike
English.news.cn

BERLIN, Dec. 2 (Xinhua) -- German airline Lufthansa said on Monday that it had canceled nearly half of its scheduled flights on Monday and Tuesday due to a strike of its pilots.

Among the 2,800 scheduled flights, some 1,350 were canceled, said Lufthansa in a statement. It expected that the strike would affect 150,000 passengers.

Pilots of short- and medium-range flights started their walkout across Germany at 12:00 (1100 GMT) on Monday. They were set to be joined by cargo and long-haul passenger flights pilots at 03:00 (0200 GMT) on Tuesday.

The strike would last until 23:59 (2259 GMT) on Tuesday, according to pilots union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC).

The union is asking for a retirement package which allows Lufthansa pilots to retire early at 55 years old while receiving 60 percent of their salaries until the regular retirement age of 65.

Several rounds of negotiations have been held, and the last one broke down last week.

Pilots have held eight strikes this year, forcing down thousands of flights and wiping millions of euros from Lufthansa's profit.

Source: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/europe/europe/2014-12/01/c_133826046.htm

-- Xinhua 2014-12-02

[jacksam]

Many many years ago, Au had a long strike by pilots.

The airline sacked em all. Subsequently we had a lot of qualified pilots move to AU.

[LawrenceChee]

I am displeased when the union believe that disruptions to their loyal customers is the only way to get results or demands

Highly disruptive and over time diminish the trust and brand value which means more jobs are vulnerable as Qatar, Ethiad , Emirates and SQ gladly take the business away

Edited December 2, 2014 by LawrenceChee

[Thomas Hannah]

There demands,simply cannot be given.Already today,Flight prices are at a minimum,The burden of tax,To the passenger,Causes this.Also how can any company give 60 percent for ten years with out any return.Someone on that union wants sacking.I am a socialist.If i was in that company,I would refuse to strike,Simply ,because the demands are in cuckoo land.