Lufthansa to cancel 800 flights on Friday due to pilots strike

German pilots’ union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) has announced that Lufthansa pilots will be instigating
a one-day strike beginning at midnight Thursday local time. The announcement has come on the
back of failed pay talks and will result in the cancellation of approximately 800 flights, which will
affect roughly 130,000 passengers, while also disrupting cargo services. Flag carrying Lufthansa has
confirmed that flight cancellations will affect both Frankfurt and Munich Airports. VC is demanding a
5.5% pay rise this year for its more than 5,000 pilots and automatic inflation compensation
thereafter. Lufthansa had offered a total of €900 euros (US$900) more in basic pay per month in two stages
over an 18-month term plus an agreement guaranteeing cockpit staff a minimum fleet size.

“We hope to get back to negotiations as soon as possible,” a Lufthansa spokesperson said today
(Thursday), adding: “However, we cannot bear the cost increases associated with VC’s demands
either”. A further blow to Lufthansa was dealt by Germany’s cartel office which has announced that
Lufthansa has been prohibited from ending existing long-term cooperation agreements with Condor,
a charter airline, until further notice, advising that the national carrier was impeding Condor from
competing on long-haul routes. However, Lufthansa has chosen not to accept the cartel office’s
decision and according to the carrier: “… we do not share the Bundeskartellamt’s view and will
therefore submit the decision to a judicial review.”