Lufthansa Cargo says it is aiming to operate around two-thirds of its scheduled flights over two days of pilot strike action, as the carrier works to minimise disruption across its freighter network.
The strike, launched by pilot union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC), affects crews at Lufthansa Cargo, Lufthansa Airlines and Lufthansa CityLine. The industrial action began on 13 April and is due to continue until midnight on 14 April.
In a statement, Lufthansa Cargo said it had introduced a range of short-notice operational measures, including the use of partner airline aircraft, to keep services moving.
The carrier said flexible solutions such as operating certain routes with AeroLogic aircraft and crews, as well as rescheduling selected flights, were allowing it to maintain up to two-thirds of its regular freighter programme.
Beyond its dedicated freighter operation, Lufthansa Cargo also markets the cargo capacity of Lufthansa Group passenger airlines. Other group carriers, including Austrian Airlines, SWISS, Brussels Airlines, Air Dolomiti and ITA Airways, are expected to support capacity needs by adding frequencies or deploying larger aircraft on services to and from Germany.
The company also noted that its joint venture partners Cathay Pacific and United Airlines are continuing to operate as planned.
Even so, Lufthansa Cargo acknowledged that a number of flights had to be cancelled and said it regretted the impact on customers that rely on its transport solutions. The airline added that it is doing everything possible to maintain service stability and keep critical supply chains moving.
The dispute is tied to ongoing contract negotiations and pension issues. VC president Andreas Pinheiro said the union had decided to act after failing to see any meaningful willingness from the employer side to resolve several collective bargaining disputes.
He said the union had deliberately refrained from striking during the Easter holidays, but that no serious proposals were made during that period and no real readiness to engage was shown.
Operationally, Lufthansa Cargo has introduced a transit embargo at Frankfurt covering certain animal and emergency shipments. At Munich, the embargo applies to all live animals as well as selected other sensitive cargoes.
Despite the disruption, the carrier said all Lufthansa Cargo flights scheduled to arrive in Frankfurt on 13 April were still expected to operate as planned.
