Lufthansa says pilots' strike 'incomprehensible' amid Iran war

Lufthansa LHAG.DE on Wednesday criticised a planned two-day walkout of its pilots this week, just as the global sector is grappling with one of its deepest crises since the pandemic.

"This escalation is completely incomprehensible, especially at a time when we are experiencing a new level of geopolitical uncertainty with the war in Iran and passengers worldwide are being affected," board member Michael Niggemann said in a statement.

Pilots' union VC had announced a strike on Thursday and Friday in its long dispute with Lufthansa over company pensions, saying the airline has not made an offer. "It's no use if the other side only signals a willingness to talk but refuses to discuss substantial improvements to the company pension scheme," it said.

The walkout will affect Lufthansa passenger and cargo flights departing from German airports, according to the union, but will exempt flights to select countries in the Middle East "in light of the current situation" there.

Lufthansa, however, is currently not offering passenger flights to destinations such as Tel Aviv, Dubai or Abu Dhabi due to the Iran conflict.

The war has caused chaos in the region's aviation sector, forcing many airlines to cancel connections or use alternative routes.

Lufthansa said that a special flight schedule is being drawn up for the two-day strike and will be published by 2:00 p.m. (1300 GMT) on Wednesday.

In Germany, the group's subsidiaries Discover Airlines and Lufthansa CityAirline will fly their scheduled programme and take on additional flights where possible, it added.

-Reporting by Thomas Seythal. Additional reporting by Matthias Williams. Editing by Mark Potter/Reuters