Lufthansa four-day pilots' strike begins
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Monday, February 22, 2010
About 4,000 pilots at German airline Lufthansa have gone on strike for four days in a dispute over job security.
The carrier has cancelled about 3,000 flights and has warned of delays both domestically and internationally.
Lufthansa's offer of unconditional talks with the pilots was not taken up on Sunday before the strike began at midnight (2300GMT).
The pilots work at Lufthansa, Lufthansa Cargo and its low-budget subsidiary, Germanwings. They are not due to return to work until midnight on Thursday.
The Cockpit Union says the airline is increasingly relying on foreign pilots who fly for less pay.
Lufthansa, Europe's largest airline, was offering train journeys to domestic air travellers, and attempting to rebook international passengers on other airlines.
Earlier, Lufthansa board member Stefan Lauer said that the airline would guarantee the jobs of its more than 4,000 pilots for two years if they returned to negotiations.
The airline normally offers about 1,800 flights daily - of which 160 are long-haul trips.
It has estimated the industrial action could cost it about 25m euros (£21.9m; $34m) per day.