UFO Union Strike Begins

Germanwings’s Cabin crew began a three-day strike today that will affect over 180 mostly domestic Eurowings flights out of about 1,200 scheduled during the New Year holiday period.

The UFO union called the action at Germanwings last week after failing to settle a long-running labor dispute with Lufthansa. Further strike action may be announced after Jan. 2, UFO spokeperson said.

Germanwings operates 30 of the approximately 140 aircraft at Lufthansa’s Eurowings unit and Eurowings said it “Will continue to do everything possible to minimize the impact.”

“This strike is unfounded and incomprehensible to us,” it said on its website. “We are doing everything to offer our passengers a normal flight schedule between Christmas and New Year.”

The dispute between Lufthansa and its cabin crew has been going on for several months. The parties hammered out a deal on pay this month, but failed to reach an agreement on working conditions. Cabin-crew members held strikes in November, leading to the cancellation over 1,300 flights.