{"id":1879657,"date":"2026-04-13T10:33:24","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T07:33:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1879657"},"modified":"2026-04-13T10:33:24","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T07:33:24","slug":"lufthansa-pilots-strike-for-2-days-flights-severely-hit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1879657","title":{"rendered":"Lufthansa pilots strike for 2 days, flights severely hit"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76761105_6.jpg&#8221;]<\/p>\n<article class=\"sk6xmai\">\n<div class=\"content-area sa7l9jt s9mg977\">\n<section data-tracking-name=\"sharing-icons-inline\" class=\"c75t7t0 hh5424a in-line closed\">\n<div class=\"copy-button-wrapper closed\"><span class=\"svdcmki\">https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/5C50s<\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<figure class=\"s4bcs45\"><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76761105_800.webp 50w, https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76761105_801.webp 129w, https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76761105_802.webp 352w, https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76761105_803.webp 575w\" media=\"(min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 575px)\" height=\"100\" width=\"100\" \/><figcaption class=\"c1oedowi lofg86o m4xla6a s16w0xvi rcjjkz7 w128axg5 b1fzgn0z\">Many Lufthansa flights, excluding those headed to much of the Middle East amid the existing flight problems caused by the conflict in Iran and the wider region, were canceled on Monday morning<small class=\"copyright c19ed66t ihwmx5 idu7i8u lxmvniw icns9en rcjjkz7 w128axg5 b1fzgn0z\">Image: Revierfoto\/dpa\/picture alliance<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div data-tracking-skip=\"true\" data-tracking-name=\"rich-text\" class=\"c17j8gzx rc0m0op r1ebneao s198y7xq rich-text l1evdo4u blt0baw s16w0xvi rcjjkz7 w128axg5 b1fzgn0z\">\n<p>Pilots with Germany&#8217;s flagship carrier\u00a0<a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/lufthansa\/t-17443992\">Lufthansa<\/a>, Lufthansa Cargo and subsidiary Eurowings began a 48-hour\u00a0strike on Monday morning.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Hundreds of flights are set to be canceled, with the major hubs of Frankfurt and Munich hit hardest, in the fourth strike of 2026 to hit the airline.<\/p>\n<p>Lufthansa is struggling to negotiate terms both with <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/germany-lufthansa-pilots-union-call-for-two-day-strike\/a-76748571\">the pilots&#8217; trade union Vereinigung Cockpit<\/a> and <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/lufthansa-cabin-crew-begin-strike\/a-76729592\">the UFO cabin crew union that called on members to strike\u00a0just last week<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2>Which flights and services were set to be affected by the strike?\u00a0<\/h2>\n<p><a rel=\"noopener follow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"external-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.frankfurt-airport.com\/de\/fluege-und-airlines\/abfluege.html?flighttype=departures&amp;time=2026-04-13T09%3A30%3A00.000Z\" title=\"External link \u2014 The homepage of Frankfurt Airport\">The homepage of Frankfurt Airport<\/a>, Germany&#8217;s busiest, showed the majority of Lufthansa departures within Europe as canceled on Monday.<\/p>\n<p>Several domestic German flights were indicated as replacement rail services instead.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;As a result of the strikes at Lufthansa by the pilots&#8217; trade union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC), there will be delays and cancellations for Lufthansa flights\u00a0all day on April 13 and 14 at Frankfurt Airport,&#8221; the hub said in a statement.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"placeholder-image master_landscape big\"><img data-format=\"MASTER_LANDSCAPE\" data-id=\"76761035\" data-url=\"https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76761035_${formatId}.jpg\" data-aspect-ratio=\"16\/9\" alt=\"Lufthansa aircraft are parked at an airport as Lufthansa pilots are on a two-day strike in Munich, Germany, Monday, April 13, 2026.\"><figcaption class=\"img-caption\">Hundreds of Lufthansa aircraft looked liable to stand idle for a couple of days amid the latest strike<small class=\"copyright\">Image: Matthias Schrader\/AP Photo\/picture alliance<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><a rel=\"noopener follow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"external-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.munich-airport.com\/departure-260464#flightsearch\" title=\"External link \u2014 The next busiest airport, Munich\">The next busiest airport, Munich<\/a>, appeared to be showing only\u00a0the flights still scheduled in its departures search window. But it\u00a0included a warning to Lufthansa and Eurowings passengers of severe strike-related disruptions, telling them to check with their providers for news of cancellations.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Eurowings pilots are only striking on Monday, not Tuesday, while Lufthansa and Lufthansa Cargo pilots with the Cockpit union have been told to strike for two days. Eurowings had said on Sunday that it expected to be able to keep &#8220;a large part&#8221; of services in the air despite the strike.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Not all pilots with Lufthansa&#8217;s airlines are VC members and complete participation in the strike is also not guaranteed.<\/p>\n<h2>Middle Eastern flights exempt amid Iran and Gulf conflict\u00a0<\/h2>\n<p>The VC union said that it would not strike on those flights still able to depart to an array of destinations in the Middle East, given the travel uncertaintly caused for more than a month now by the conflict in Iran and the wider region.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Lufthansa and Lufthansa Cityline flights from Germany to Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Egpyt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman,\u00a0Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen would all be exempt from the strike action, according to VC.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"placeholder-image master_landscape big\"><img data-format=\"MASTER_LANDSCAPE\" data-id=\"76761069\" data-url=\"https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76761069_${formatId}.jpg\" data-aspect-ratio=\"16\/9\" alt=\"The president of the Vereinigung Cockpit pilots' trade union, Andreas Pinheiro, speaks at a press confernece at Frankfurt Airport in Germany on Monday, April 13, 2026. \"><figcaption class=\"img-caption\">VC&#8217;s President Andreas Pinheiro spoke to reporters in Frankfurt on Monday<small class=\"copyright\">Image: Revierfoto\/dpa\/picture alliance<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>What did the airline and the union say about the latest strike?\u00a0<\/h2>\n<p>&#8220;Lufthansa is working intensively to keep the impact on our passengers as low as possible. We are trying to have as many flights as possible operated by other airlines within the Lufthansa Group and by partner airlines,&#8221; Lufthansa said on its website.<\/p>\n<p>It also advised passengers whose flights were canceled altogether that they could exchange their tickets for Deutsche Bahn rail tickets.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The pilots&#8217; strike center on pay disputes, including the company pension scheme and remuneration at the regional subsidiary CityLine.<\/p>\n<p>The airline criticized VC&#8217;s decision to strike, a few days after it announced a deal for both pilots and ground staff with rival trade union Verdi as its negotiations with specialist unions VC and UFO degenerate into repeated strikes.<\/p>\n<p>It said that the union&#8217;s core demand &#8220;for the doubling of an already above-average and excellent company pension plan is absurd and unfulfillable.&#8221;\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>VC, meanwhile, laid much of the blame with Lufthansa.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Vereinigung Cockpit sees itself as forced into this step, after the employer showed no recognizable willingness for a solution in several wage disputes,&#8221; VC President Andreas Pinheiro said. &#8220;Despite consciously refraining from strike action over the Easter bank holidays, offers worth taking seriously are still not forthcoming. In this time there was neither a reaction nor recognizable signs of a willingness to negotiate from the employer&#8217;s side.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><em>Edited by: Louis Oelofse<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div data-tracking-skip=\"true\" data-tracking-name=\"rich-text\" class=\"c17j8gzx rc0m0op r1ebneao s198y7xq rich-text l1evdo4u blt0baw s16w0xvi rcjjkz7 w128axg5 b1fzgn0z\">\n<p>Pilots with Germany&#8217;s flagship carrier\u00a0<a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/lufthansa\/t-17443992\">Lufthansa<\/a>, Lufthansa Cargo and subsidiary Eurowings began a 48-hour\u00a0strike on Monday morning.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Hundreds of flights are set to be canceled, with the major hubs of Frankfurt and Munich hit hardest, in the fourth strike of 2026 to hit the airline.<\/p>\n<p>Lufthansa is struggling to negotiate terms both with <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/germany-lufthansa-pilots-union-call-for-two-day-strike\/a-76748571\">the pilots&#8217; trade union Vereinigung Cockpit<\/a> and <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/lufthansa-cabin-crew-begin-strike\/a-76729592\">the UFO cabin crew union that called on members to strike\u00a0just last week<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2>Which flights and services were set to be affected by the strike?\u00a0<\/h2>\n<p><a rel=\"noopener follow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"external-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.frankfurt-airport.com\/de\/fluege-und-airlines\/abfluege.html?flighttype=departures&amp;time=2026-04-13T09%3A30%3A00.000Z\" title=\"External link \u2014 The homepage of Frankfurt Airport\">The homepage of Frankfurt Airport<\/a>, Germany&#8217;s busiest, showed the majority of Lufthansa departures within Europe as canceled on Monday.<\/p>\n<p>Several domestic German flights were indicated as replacement rail services instead.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;As a result of the strikes at Lufthansa by the pilots&#8217; trade union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC), there will be delays and cancellations for Lufthansa flights\u00a0all day on April 13 and 14 at Frankfurt Airport,&#8221; the hub said in a statement.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"placeholder-image master_landscape big\"><img data-format=\"MASTER_LANDSCAPE\" data-id=\"76761035\" data-url=\"https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76761035_${formatId}.jpg\" data-aspect-ratio=\"16\/9\" alt=\"Lufthansa aircraft are parked at an airport as Lufthansa pilots are on a two-day strike in Munich, Germany, Monday, April 13, 2026.\"><figcaption class=\"img-caption\">Hundreds of Lufthansa aircraft looked liable to stand idle for a couple of days amid the latest strike<small class=\"copyright\">Image: Matthias Schrader\/AP Photo\/picture alliance<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><a rel=\"noopener follow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"external-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.munich-airport.com\/departure-260464#flightsearch\" title=\"External link \u2014 The next busiest airport, Munich\">The next busiest airport, Munich<\/a>, appeared to be showing only\u00a0the flights still scheduled in its departures search window. But it\u00a0included a warning to Lufthansa and Eurowings passengers of severe strike-related disruptions, telling them to check with their providers for news of cancellations.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Eurowings pilots are only striking on Monday, not Tuesday, while Lufthansa and Lufthansa Cargo pilots with the Cockpit union have been told to strike for two days. Eurowings had said on Sunday that it expected to be able to keep &#8220;a large part&#8221; of services in the air despite the strike.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Not all pilots with Lufthansa&#8217;s airlines are VC members and complete participation in the strike is also not guaranteed.<\/p>\n<h2>Middle Eastern flights exempt amid Iran and Gulf conflict\u00a0<\/h2>\n<p>The VC union said that it would not strike on those flights still able to depart to an array of destinations in the Middle East, given the travel uncertaintly caused for more than a month now by the conflict in Iran and the wider region.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Lufthansa and Lufthansa Cityline flights from Germany to Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Egpyt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman,\u00a0Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen would all be exempt from the strike action, according to VC.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"placeholder-image master_landscape big\"><img data-format=\"MASTER_LANDSCAPE\" data-id=\"76761069\" data-url=\"https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76761069_${formatId}.jpg\" data-aspect-ratio=\"16\/9\" alt=\"The president of the Vereinigung Cockpit pilots' trade union, Andreas Pinheiro, speaks at a press confernece at Frankfurt Airport in Germany on Monday, April 13, 2026. \"><figcaption class=\"img-caption\">VC&#8217;s President Andreas Pinheiro spoke to reporters in Frankfurt on Monday<small class=\"copyright\">Image: Revierfoto\/dpa\/picture alliance<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>What did the airline and the union say about the latest strike?\u00a0<\/h2>\n<p>&#8220;Lufthansa is working intensively to keep the impact on our passengers as low as possible. We are trying to have as many flights as possible operated by other airlines within the Lufthansa Group and by partner airlines,&#8221; Lufthansa said on its website.<\/p>\n<p>It also advised passengers whose flights were canceled altogether that they could exchange their tickets for Deutsche Bahn rail tickets.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The pilots&#8217; strike center on pay disputes, including the company pension scheme and remuneration at the regional subsidiary CityLine.<\/p>\n<p>The airline criticized VC&#8217;s decision to strike, a few days after it announced a deal for both pilots and ground staff with rival trade union Verdi as its negotiations with specialist unions VC and UFO degenerate into repeated strikes.<\/p>\n<p>It said that the union&#8217;s core demand &#8220;for the doubling of an already above-average and excellent company pension plan is absurd and unfulfillable.&#8221;\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>VC, meanwhile, laid much of the blame with Lufthansa.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Vereinigung Cockpit sees itself as forced into this step, after the employer showed no recognizable willingness for a solution in several wage disputes,&#8221; VC President Andreas Pinheiro said. &#8220;Despite consciously refraining from strike action over the Easter bank holidays, offers worth taking seriously are still not forthcoming. In this time there was neither a reaction nor recognizable signs of a willingness to negotiate from the employer&#8217;s side.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><em>Edited by: Louis Oelofse<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Pilots with Germany&#8217;s flagship carrier\u00a0<a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/lufthansa\/t-17443992\">Lufthansa<\/a>, Lufthansa Cargo and subsidiary Eurowings began a 48-hour\u00a0strike on Monday morning.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Hundreds of flights are set to be canceled, with the major hubs of Frankfurt and Munich hit hardest, in the fourth strike of 2026 to hit the airline.<\/p>\n<p>Lufthansa is struggling to negotiate terms both with <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/germany-lufthansa-pilots-union-call-for-two-day-strike\/a-76748571\">the pilots&#8217; trade union Vereinigung Cockpit<\/a> and <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/lufthansa-cabin-crew-begin-strike\/a-76729592\">the UFO cabin crew union that called on members to strike\u00a0just last week<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a rel=\"noopener follow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"external-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.frankfurt-airport.com\/de\/fluege-und-airlines\/abfluege.html?flighttype=departures&amp;time=2026-04-13T09%3A30%3A00.000Z\" title=\"External link \u2014 The homepage of Frankfurt Airport\">The homepage of Frankfurt Airport<\/a>, Germany&#8217;s busiest, showed the majority of Lufthansa departures within Europe as canceled on Monday.<\/p>\n<p>Several domestic German flights were indicated as replacement rail services instead.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;As a result of the strikes at Lufthansa by the pilots&#8217; trade union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC), there will be delays and cancellations for Lufthansa flights\u00a0all day on April 13 and 14 at Frankfurt Airport,&#8221; the hub said in a statement.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a rel=\"noopener follow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"external-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.munich-airport.com\/departure-260464#flightsearch\" title=\"External link \u2014 The next busiest airport, Munich\">The next busiest airport, Munich<\/a>, appeared to be showing only\u00a0the flights still scheduled in its departures search window. But it\u00a0included a warning to Lufthansa and Eurowings passengers of severe strike-related disruptions, telling them to check with their providers for news of cancellations.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Eurowings pilots are only striking on Monday, not Tuesday, while Lufthansa and Lufthansa Cargo pilots with the Cockpit union have been told to strike for two days. Eurowings had said on Sunday that it expected to be able to keep &#8220;a large part&#8221; of services in the air despite the strike.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Not all pilots with Lufthansa&#8217;s airlines are VC members and complete participation in the strike is also not guaranteed.<\/p>\n<p>The VC union said that it would not strike on those flights still able to depart to an array of destinations in the Middle East, given the travel uncertaintly caused for more than a month now by the conflict in Iran and the wider region.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Lufthansa and Lufthansa Cityline flights from Germany to Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Egpyt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman,\u00a0Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen would all be exempt from the strike action, according to VC.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Lufthansa is working intensively to keep the impact on our passengers as low as possible. We are trying to have as many flights as possible operated by other airlines within the Lufthansa Group and by partner airlines,&#8221; Lufthansa said on its website.<\/p>\n<p>It also advised passengers whose flights were canceled altogether that they could exchange their tickets for Deutsche Bahn rail tickets.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The pilots&#8217; strike center on pay disputes, including the company pension scheme and remuneration at the regional subsidiary CityLine.<\/p>\n<p>The airline criticized VC&#8217;s decision to strike, a few days after it announced a deal for both pilots and ground staff with rival trade union Verdi as its negotiations with specialist unions VC and UFO degenerate into repeated strikes.<\/p>\n<p>It said that the union&#8217;s core demand &#8220;for the doubling of an already above-average and excellent company pension plan is absurd and unfulfillable.&#8221;\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>VC, meanwhile, laid much of the blame with Lufthansa.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Vereinigung Cockpit sees itself as forced into this step, after the employer showed no recognizable willingness for a solution in several wage disputes,&#8221; VC President Andreas Pinheiro said. &#8220;Despite consciously refraining from strike action over the Easter bank holidays, offers worth taking seriously are still not forthcoming. In this time there was neither a reaction nor recognizable signs of a willingness to negotiate from the employer&#8217;s side.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><em>Edited by: Louis Oelofse<\/em><\/p>\n<p>[analyse_source url=&#8221;https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/lufthansa-pilots-launch-2-day-strike-the-fourth-this-year-hundreds-of-flights-canceled\/a-76760890&#8243;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76761105_6.jpg&#8221;] https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/5C50s Many Lufthansa flights, excluding those headed to much of the Middle East amid the existing flight problems caused by the conflict in Iran and the wider region, were canceled on Monday morningImage: Revierfoto\/dpa\/picture alliance Pilots with Germany&#8217;s flagship carrier\u00a0Lufthansa, Lufthansa Cargo and subsidiary Eurowings began a 48-hour\u00a0strike on Monday morning.\u00a0 Hundreds [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[226,74],"class_list":["post-1879657","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-crawlmanager","tag-dw-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1879657","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1879657"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1879657\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1879657"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1879657"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1879657"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}