More flight chaos as European airline extends strike

Pilots of a major European airline have announced they are extending their strike action by another two days.

Earlier this week, 50,000 passengers were affected by industrial action carried out by Lufthansa pilots on Monday and Tuesday, April 13 and 14.

Pilots' union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) and the German carrier are disagreeing over a company pension scheme for pilots, with the union demanding that the airline more than double its contributions.

Now, the workers are set to strike again on Thursday and Friday, April 16 and 17.

On Tuesday, Andreas Pinheiro, president of the VC union, said: The situation remains unchanged - there is absolutely no movement on the part of the employers.

'Neither Lufthansa and Lufthansa Cargo have made an offer regarding company pension schemes, nor has Lufthansa CityLine made a viable offer for a new collective bargaining agreement on remuneration, nor has Eurowings made any offer regarding company pension schemes.'

He described the situation as 'deadlocked'.

The action has impacted flights departing from German airports and some 900 flights were cancelled at Frankfurt and Munich on Tuesday alone.

Major European airline Lufthansa is set to be impacted by further strike action

Flights to destinations in the Middle East region are still continuing regardless of the strikes, due to the situation in the area.

Cabin crew union UFO also announced a walk out scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday.

Lufthansa released a statement that reassured travellers it is 'working intensively to keep the impact on passengers as low as possible'.

It said: 'The cabin crew union UFO has announced a strike at Lufthansa (LH) and Lufthansa CityLine (CL) at short notice for Wednesday, 15 April and Thursday, 16 April 2026.

'Lufthansa is working intensively to keep the impact on passengers as low as possible. We are trying to have as many flights as possible operated by other airlines within the Lufthansa Group and by partner airlines.

'However, despite these efforts, flight cancellations are unavoidable. These cancellations will be loaded into the booking systems by Tuesday morning, 14 April 2026 (CET) at the latest.

'Please note: Flights operated by Austrian Airlines (OS), Brussels Airlines (SN), Eurowings (EW), SWISS (LX), Air Dolomiti (EN), Discover Airlines (4Y), Edelweiss (WK) and Lufthansa City Airlines (VL) will not be affected by the strike.

'Travelers who are affected by an irregularity will be informed accordingly, provided their contact details are stored in the booking.

'We ask passengers to check the status of their flight before setting out on their journey.'

In a comment to the Daily Mail, Lufthansa added: 'We can confirm that we have received the latest strike notice from the Vereinigung Cockpit union for April 16 and 17.

'We are open to comprehensive mediation on all collective bargaining issues in order to achieve a lasting resolution.'

Lufthansa's website states: 'We sincerely regret the disruption caused by the strike announced at short notice by the unions Vereinigung Cockpit and UFO and thank you for your understanding.'