India’s state-owned Air India cancelled more than 76 flights on Wednesday due to a strike by its staff, a day after British Airways workers went on a five-day strike.
Here is a chronology of major airline strikes since 2009:
Jan. 2009 – Germany’s Deutsche Lufthansa grounds 44 flights after flight attendants stage a warning strike at the behest of trade union UFO, which is vying for higher wages.
— Four separate three-hour strikes, in protest against pension reforms and low salaries, by air traffic controllers ground hundreds of flights in Greece. The protesters later joined 24-hour public sector strikes in Feb.
Feb. – Warning strikes called by public sector union Verdi at Berlin’s two international airports – Tegel and Schoenefeld, ground 24 flights. Protestors are seeking an 8 percent hike in wages.
March – Unions announce a one-hour strike across Spain’s 47 state-owned airports in protest against government’s plan to privatize state controlled company AENA – which owns and operates all Spanish airports.
Aug. – Morocco’s Royal Air Maroc’s (RAM) pilots go on strike, grounding its fleet of 33 planes, after RAM rejected the pilot’s demand to give precedence to locals over foreign pilots at its low cost airlines.
–Kenya airways, faces flight disruption at Nairobi, as a fallout of a strike by some 3,000 workers demanding a 130 percent wage increase.
Sept – India’s private air carrier Jet Airways’ 600 pilots go on strike – pushing for the reinstatement of two sacked pilots, grounding more than 200 flights.
–Government owned Air India’s 250 pilots go on a strike, in protest against pay incentive cuts, leading to cancellation of its flights.
Sept. – Serbian airlines JAT cancels flights after workers from Maintenance Company JAT Tehnika call a strike pertaining to JAT’s overdue debts.
Jan. 2010 – French air traffic controllers go on a two-day strike in response to planned job cuts, resulting in cancelled flights.
Feb. – German carrier Lufthansa’s pilots go on a four day strike in protest against cost cuts attained by shifting jobs to foreign subsidiaries.
March – British Airways cabin crew goes on a three day strike from March 20-22 and again resumes the strike from March 27- 30 over disputes resulting from BA’s decision to carry out heavy cost cuts – it wants to save 62.5 million pounds – resulting in cuts in long haul flight crews, wage freeze and job cuts. Announces a new wave of strikes scheduled for May 18-22, May 24-28, May 30-June 3 and June 5-9.
April – Lebanon’s Middle East Airlines’ 170 pilots go on a 24-hour strike disrupting 23 flights, demanding better salaries, holidays and pensions.
May 24 – British Airways workers go on a five-day strike after the union Unite and the company failed to resume talks.
May 25 – India’s state-owned Air India cancels more than 76 flights due to strike by ground staff protesting a media gag order.
