Passengers using Lufthansa out of Vancouver International Airport tomorrow may face flight cancellations, after their pilots in Germany voted to strike.
The German airline announced on Thursday that it is having to cancel almost all passenger and cargo flights on Friday, Sept. 2 – about 800 - from its two biggest hubs, Frankfurt and Munich.
The news comes as YVR braces itself for one of its busiest weekends of the year, with tens of thousands of people flying home over the Labour Day holiday.
And it comes just a few days after the agency tasked with the airport's security screening, CATSA, suffered mass, one-day absencies, causing massive line-ups for passengers.
A spokesperson for YVR told the Richmond News that the strike, so far, is affecting two outbound and two inbound flights.
The two outbound flights scheduled for today have been moved to tomorrow, according to YVR, and the inbound flights scheduled for tomorrow have been cancelled. This information is available at: https://www.yvr.ca/en/passengers/flights.
"Affected Lufthansa passengers should contact the airline for the latest information," added the spokesperson.
The union representing the Lufthansa pilots, Vereinigung Cockpit, said the airline has not improved a previous offer, adding that demands for a pay increase were rejected by management.
Lufthansa warning for passengers travelling September 2
A news release issued by Lufthansa on Thursday morning warned passengers that there will be a “major restriction in the Lufthansa flight programme on Friday, 2 September.
“In the course of today, Thursday, Lufthansa will adjust the flight schedule and publish the cancellations. All guests with contact details in the booking will be informed via text message or mail.”
The airline added that, due to the large number of cancellations, “it can sometimes take longer until Lufthansa can offer you an adequate rebooking solution.
“If you have not received any notification from Lufthansa within 18 hours of the cancellation message, please check the current status of your booking yourself online at www.lufthansa.com.”
Eurowings not affected by Lufthansa pilot strike
Lufthansa said that flights operated by its budget airlines Eurowings or Eurowings Discover are not affected by the strike.
According to Lufthansa, the company had offered a one-off increase of 900 euros ($900 U.S.), amounting to a 5% increase for senior pilots and an 18% increase for those starting the profession.
The union has called for a 5.5% raise this year and an automatic above-inflation increase in 2023.
In addition, pilots are seeking a new pay and holiday structure that the airline said would increase its staffing costs by about 40%, or some 900 million euros over two years.
