The German flag carrier Lufthansa is now facing a major crisis after flight attendants announced yet another strike… The walkout is slated to start just as a seperate walkout by pilots finishes, bringing four days of flight chaos to the airline.
The latest strike was announced with little more than 48 hours’ notice by the UFO flight attendant union, and just days after cabin crew took part in another strike last Friday.
“We are dealing here with an employer that has entrenched itself in a hardline position, while constantly proclaiming that it is ‘ready to negotiate at any time,’” commented Harry Jaeger, one of the UFO’s chief negotiators.
“Instead of seeking sustainable solutions, excuses are found—and, if necessary, fabricated—to justify worsened conditions and reject improvements. But the causes of the current situation do not lie with the employees—on the contrary,” Jaeger continued.
“It is the colleagues who have steered Lufthansa through difficult times for years and contributed significantly to its economic success—despite challenging conditions and despite some management decisions.”
The strike is set to take place between Wednesday, April 15, and Thursday, April 16, and will involve flight attendants at Lufthansa’s mainline brand as well as a subsidiary known as Lufthansa CityLine, which operates certain short-haul services from Germany to European destinations.
Lufthansa says it is trying to get other airlines within the wider Lufthansa Group to operate some flights, but massive disruption is still expected.
On Monday, the first day of a seperate strike by pilots, the Vereinigung Cockpit union said that at least 700 flights operated by Lufthansa, Lufthansa Cargo, Lufthansa CityLine and Eurowings had been cancelled, leaving tens of thousands of passengers stranded.
Just like the pilot strike, the planned walkout by flight attendants isn’t over one single issue.
Mainline flight attendants are furious with Lufthansa’s plans for a “radical overhaul” of work rules such as working hours, rest periods, and sick pay provisions, which are contained within a collective agreement known as a Manteltarifvertrag or MTV agreement for short.
Last month, the UFO union walked out of negotiations over the proposed MTV changes and held a strike ballot. Around 98% of flight attendants voted in favor of strike action if Lufthansa didn’t retract its demands for sweeping work rule changes.
Meanwhile, Lufthansa CityLine crew members are unhappy with the airline’s plans to shutter the subsidiary and hand off its operations to a newer subsidiary with cheaper staff.
CityLine flight attendants want Lufthansa to commit to a redundancy scheme, but have become increasingly frustrated with the airline stalling negotiations.
Since February, Lufthansa has faced days of strike action from disgruntled pilots and flight attendants:
- On February 12, pilots at Lufthansa and Lufthansa Cargo, as well as mainline flight attendants and CityLine crew members, staged a one-day warning strike.
- On March 12 and March 13, pilots held a 48-hour work stoppage in protest at an ongoing dispute over pension contributions.
- On April 10, flight attendants at Lufthansa and Lufthansa CityLine took part in a one-day strike.
- On April 13 and April 14, pilots at Lufthansa, Lufthansa Cargo, Lufthansa CityLine, and Eurowings are taking part in a 48-hour stoppage.
In a statement, Lufthansa said: “We sincerely regret the disruption caused by the strike announced at short notice by the unions Vereinigung Cockpit and UFO and thank you for your understanding.”
Your questions
Will passengers on cancelled flights be eligible for EU261 compensation? While a definitive answer isn’t possible, it would be very difficult for Lufthansa to argue that these strikes are the result of an ‘extraordinary circumstance’ which would exempt it from paying EU261 compensation. As a result, Lufthansa could have to pay up to €600 per passenger for short-notice cancellations or lengthy delays.
What other rights do passengers have? Regardless of compensation, Lufthansa is required to provide passengers on cancelled or delayed flights access to refreshments, hotel accommodation for overnight delays, and transport to and from the place of accommodation.
Due to the massive nature of the disruption, Lufthansa is likely to ask passengers to find their own hotel accommodation and then claim back from the airline at a later date.
Why is Lufthansa playing hardball with aircrew? The airline is desperate to save money after years of disappointing financial results. Lufthansa CEO Carsten Sphor has previously described the mainline airline as the Lufthansa Group’s “problem child” due to high overheads that cut into profit margins.
In 2025, the mainline Lufthansa brand made €17.1 billion in revenues but only €148 million in profit. In comparison, SWISS made €6.48 billion in revenue but €600 million in profit, and Eurowings made €132 million in profit on revenues of €3.08 billion.
How much will these strikes cost Lufthansa? The costs from these walkouts will be quickly mounting and could easily stretch into the hundreds of millions of Euros. A coordinated series of strikes by flight attendants and ground staff in 2024 cost Lufthansa around €350 million, plus an additional €100 million in short term pay rises and one-off bonuses.
Lufthansa will be able to slightly offset these costs in fuel savings and staff wages, but this won’t make too much of a dent into the total bill the airline is facing.
