Lufthansa strike - 3800 flights cancelled

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The Germany Eye Strike LatestLufthansa pilots have agreed to a strike over pay and working conditions, which has resulted in the cancellation of 3,800 flights.  Starting from Wednesday and running until Friday, the airline said 425,000 travellers would be affected by the strike. Lufthansa claims that it has sent 100,000 text messages to people who have booked a flight with them in an attempt to prevent chaos at airports. Emergency sleeping arrangements and food has been made available at larger airports for those who did not receive the warning messages.

The pilots' union, Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) claims Lufthansa had failed to make a "negotiable offer" during two years of pay negotiations. "A strike of three consecutive days would be one of the biggest walkouts in Lufthansa's history," the company said in a statement.

Lufthansa states that the dispute is likely to cost it tens of millions of euros.  Lufthansa, Lufthansa Cargo and the company's budget airline Germanwings are all affected by the strike.  Lufthansa had to cancel hundreds of flights last week when public sector workers went on strike at seven German airports in a separate dispute that had nothing to do with the airline.