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AIRLINES

BA strike set to hit Swedish flights

Travellers between Sweden and the UK face delays and cancellations this weekend due to a strike by British Airways cabin crew, with three out of five flights from Stockholm to London cancelled on Sunday.

Published: 19 March 2010 16:24 CET
BA strike set to hit Swedish flights

A three day strike will begin at midnight on Saturday, with a four-day strike due to start on 27th March. The strike looked certain to go ahead after talks between BA and the Unite union broke down on Friday afternoon.

BA has promised to keep as many flights as possible in the air, and has drafted in staff from other parts of the company to replace the striking crew. But travellers flying between Stockholm and London will still face severe disruption, according to a provisional schedule published by the airline.

Three out of five scheduled flights between Stockholm Arlanda and London Heathrow have been cancelled in both directions on both Sunday and Monday, according to BA’s latest timetable. From Stockholm to London, only the 11:45 and 18:55 services will be operating normally. Tuesday will be slightly better, with the 15:05 flight also running.

Tomorrow (Saturday), the first day of the strike, will see only one cancellation from Arlanda to Heathrow, at 15:05. Two out of four flights from London to Stockholm have been cancelled, however.

The strike will have an even greater effect in Copenhagen, where only one flight will be operating on both Sunday and Monday. British Airways is advising those with tickets to keep checking their online timetable for up-to-date flight information. Passengers whose flights have been cancelled should not come to the airport, it advises on its website.

For those planning to connect with a BA flight in London the uncertainty is set to be even greater, although the company’s CEO Willie Walsh has said he expects more than 60 percent of long-haul flights to operate.

British Airways is offering refunds or alternative flight dates to passengers whose flights are cancelled.

Unite has called the strike in response to cost-cutting by BA. The airline has made cuts to the number of cabin crew on long-haul flights and imposed a two-year pay freeze from this year. BA also wants to pay new recruits significantly less than current staff members. The airline claims it must reduce costs after suffering a pre-tax loss of £342 million for the nine months to December 2009.

Are you planning to travel between Stockholm or Copenhagen and London with BA this weekend? How has the strike affected your plans? Let us know!

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TOURISM

EU authorises €4 billion bailout of Air France, despite Ryanair’s objections

The EU authorised the French government on Tuesday to double its stake in Air France and inject up to four billion euros into the struggling airline after the pandemic hit passenger traffic.

Published: 6 April 2021 11:37 CEST
EU authorises €4 billion bailout of Air France, despite Ryanair's objections
Photo: Kenzo Tribaullard/AFP

The agreement follows weeks of negotiations with the EU commission, which must ensure that state aid does not give companies an unfair advantage.

Air France posted a €7.1 billion loss in 2020 as its business, like that of the rest of the world’s airlines, suffered from coronavirus restrictions which all but grounded global air traffic.

In return for its green light, the commission, which is the EU’s anti-trust regulator, said Air France would relinquish about 18 slots per day at Orly, Paris’ second-largest airport after Charles de Gaulle.

“This gives competing carriers the chance to expand their activities at this airport, ensuring fair prices and increased choice for European consumers,” EU competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager said.

French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said the EU had also allowed the French state to raise its stake in Air France-KLM group to 30 percent, up from the current 14.3 percent.

The Netherlands’ flag-carrier KLM, which forms an alliance with Air France, will not benefit from the aid.

Nevertheless, the Dutch government welcomed the approval of additional aid.

In a joint statement Le Maire and his Dutch counterpart Wopke Hoekstra said a recapitalisation of KLM by the government of the Netherlands was being looked at.

The recapitalisation of Air France will take place by converting loans it received from the French state last year into perpetual hybrid Air France-KLM bonds that can be converted into equity.

Shares in Air France-KLM fell by 1.4 percent in Amsterdam and 1.6 percent in Paris, while both markets were trading higher.

Independent aviation analyst John Strickland told AFP that “competitors will not be happy and it is important to see that the proposed slot remedy at Orly has real meaning in terms of facilitating additional competing services.”

Rival airline Ryanair, whose criticism of state subsidy for legacy airlines often finds a sympathetic ear at the European Commission, has lambasted previous French aid for Air France, saying it distorts competition.

The Irish-based low-cost carrier has long railed against the support given to national champions, and is often backed by Brussels.

Ryanair — Europe’s biggest airline in terms of ridership — is also seeking to challenge Germany’s massive bailout of Lufthansa in the EU courts as well as schemes in Spain, the Netherlands, Denmark and Portugal.

The French and Dutch ministers defended their support for their airline group.

“The connectivity of France and the Netherlands is of great importance for both economies and therefore the recovery of the Air France – KLM Group is in the best interest of the two states,” they said in their statement.

They also noted that the airlines have restructured to shore up their financial positions and made commitments to accelerate their transition towards environmental sustainability.

“It’s not surprising to see further government investment in Air France but the key question is whether it will lead to attempts to impose political direction on the group’s management beyond their commercial objectives,” said Strickland.

The ministers said France does not intend to raise its stake in the group any higher and that there are no plans to nationalise the respective airlines.

European airlines are hoping vaccination campaigns will pick up pace to allow for a resumption of travel ahead of the summer vacation season, which is when they traditionally make most of their money, to help them recover financially.

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