Lufthansa has cancelled the majority of its flights scheduled for Monday, April 22, due to a planned warning strike.
The German airline said about only about 30 of its flights would run as planned on Monday, out of more than 1,700 originally scheduled.
Only a select few short-haul flights will operate on Monday, such as in Berlin, where strike actions should end by 2:30 p.m. CET. In all, only 20 of the 1,650 planned Lufthansa short-haul flights on Monday will operate due to the limited flight schedule.
In addition to the cancellations in Germany and Europe, massive flight cancellations and delays are to be expected for long-haul flights beginning Sunday April, 21. Of the 50 planned flights in Frankfurt, only six will operate; in Munich, of the 17 planned flights, only three will operate; whereas, in Dusseldorf all three long-haul flights are scheduled to operate as planned.
Lufthansa has cancelled the majority of its flights scheduled for Monday, April 22, due to a planned warning strike
Flights operated by Germanwings will not be affected, says the company.
Ground staff have called a one-day strike in a pay dispute.
Last week Lufthansa rejected union demands for a 5.2% wage increase over the next 12 months.
Strikers are also looking for guarantees over job cuts.
Like many airlines, Lufthansa is looking to cut costs in the face of stiff competition from low-cost carriers and big Gulf airlines, as well as rising fuel prices.
Unions staged a similar one-day strike last month. Short “warning strikes” are a common tactic among German unions, designed to put pressure on wage negotiations.
In a statement on its website, Lufthansa said passengers should expect “massive” flight cancellations and delays that will start to affect long-haul flights from Sunday.
Lufthansa also asks passengers to check the status of their flight before leaving for the airport.
A new aviation rules will allow carriers operating in the South Pacific to take a “short cut” over the North Pole for the first time.
Under the new relaxation of aviation rules, British air passengers will be able to cut the times of long-haul flights by as much as half and fly faster to exotic destinations.
It could also mean cheaper and cleaner flights for holidaymakers.
While pilots from Australia taking passengers to South America will be able to steer more direct courses making big savings in time, fuel and emissions.
Until now, Boeing’s 777 and the new 787 Dreamliner jets had for safety reasons to stay within a three hour range (180 minutes) of the nearest diversion airport.
Under the new rules, that has been nearly doubled to five and a half hours, (330 minutes) taking account of improvements in aircraft and engine technology.
It means, for example, that planes from the UK will be able to take a non-stop flight – dubbed “Santa’s short cut” – over the North Pole to destinations such as Hawaii, Alaska or French Polynesia.
It also means shorter journeys, cheaper flights, less fuel, and lower emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), the so-called greenhouse gas, which is blamed for global warming.
The “extended operations” rules define the time that an aircraft is permitted to be from an emergency landing site in case of an engine failure and is applied to two-engine jets.
The new regulation follows a decision by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration to allow up to 330-minutes “extended operations” for Boeings’ 777 fleet.
It allows airlines operating Boeing 777-300ER (extended range), 777-200LR (longer range), 777 Freighter and 777-200ER models equipped with General Electric engines to fly up to 330 minutes from a potential “diversion” airport.
Approval for the Boeing 777-200ER equipped with British Rolls-Royce and American Pratt & Whitney engines is expected to follow over the next few months.
The first airline to take advantage of the new longer “extended operations” option is Air New Zealand which earlier this month flew from Los Angeles to Auckland.
Last October The European Aviation Safety Agency granted a 207-minute rating after receiving an application from Air France to fly a 777-300ER from Los Angeles to Papeete, Tahiti. The European agency is also expected to adopt the 330-minute rule.
Planes once flew over the North Pole during the Cold War in the 1950s to avoid Communist Bloc airspace.
