The two-day strike announced by the pilots’ union, Vereinigung Cockpit (VC), began on Monday morning at Lufthansa. Employees at Lufthansa, Lufthansa Cargo, Lufthansa Cityline, and Eurowings plan to halt their work. Eurowings is only impacted on Monday, with the rest of the group’s operations continuing through until 11:59 PM on Tuesday. Flights to the Middle East have been exempted from the strike.
The Vereinigung Cockpit stated that the strike is necessary because the employer side has shown no willingness to resolve the conflicts across several collective bargaining agreements. Even after shelving strike actions over the Easter holidays, no credible offers were presented. Significant differences remain, particularly regarding the company pension scheme and the wage collective agreements.
Numerous flight cancellations are expected at Lufthansa, adding to the disruptions that began when cabin crew struck on Friday. The airline announced its intention to keep the impact on passengers as minimal as possible. Therefore, efforts are being made to operate as many flights as possible using other airlines within the Lufthansa Group and from partner carriers. Travelers are advised to check the current status of their flights.