It’s been a bad few weeks for German airline Lufthansa. Following recent strikes at subsidiary Germanwings and a walk-out at Frankfurt Airport last week, the airline’s pilot union has announced yet another withdrawal of service, this time at Lufthansa’s Munich hub.
Pilot union Vereinigung Cockpit has stated the strike will run from 0800 to 1600 GMT at Munich Airport on September 10, 2014. Vereinigung Cockpit is trying to pressure Lufthansa over new plans and regulations that govern early retirement plans for pilots at the German national carrier.
Lufthansa has published a list of flights that are currently cancelled for today and tomorrow. While these mainly affect flights to and from Munich (including long-haul flights), additional flight cancellations or delays will likely be felt across the network as aircraft are unable to position for further flights.
If you are in Europe, or are scheduled to fly with Lufthansa in the coming days, it will make sense to keep a close eye on their website. While the pilots union has not announced additional strikes, it would seem highly likely that they will continue to put pressure on Lufthansa during the busy fall travel season.
According to Reuters, Lufthansa described the job action as “incomprehensible.”
Many river cruisers travelling to Europe from North America do so with Lufthansa because of their convenient hubs in Frankfurt and Munich. Keep in mind that even if you fly from North America on another Star Alliance partner airline – like Air Canada or United – your connecting carrier may be Lufthansa.
At this time, flights operated by Lufthansa Group airlines including Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Germanwings and Swiss (airline codes OS, SN, 4U, LX) as well as flights of Air Dolomiti will operate as scheduled.
