Spanish pilots union Sepla called the strike on Thursday due to what they referred to as the airline’s “zero interest” in resolving the labour dispute. 

The planned strike dates are May 1st, 2nd, 4th and 5th, involving between 620 and 640 pilots at all airports in Spain where Air Europa has bases.

This will coincide with the May Day bank holiday, a public holiday in Madrid on May 2nd and Mother’s Day, a time when plenty of air travel is expected.

Hundreds of Air Europa flights are likely to be cancelled and delayed, but the airline will have to offer minimum services by law, which usually means that passengers whose flights are cancelled are put on an alternative flight on the same day.

For example, if Air Europa has three daily flights between Madrid and Seville, the airline would have to operate at the very least one of them.

Air Europa will still have to offer a reimbursement to affected passengers who don’t wish to change their travel plans, and as much as €600 can be claimed for damages.

For Sepla, it’s “disheartening” that Air Europa’s managers “ignore” the pilots’ call for a rise in wages, which have remained stagnant for the past few years and resulted in a loss of purchasing power.

That’s despite the fact that the airline has increased its flight prices by 54 percent in the last year, Sepla stresses. 

Similar disputes over wages saw pilots and cabin crew belonging to Vueling, Ryanair, Easyjet, Air Nostrum and Iberia Express strike over the course of 2022.

Last February, Airline group IAG, parent company of British Airways and Iberia, announced the acquisition of Air Europa for €500 million from Spanish company Globalia.