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British Airways strike threat: When would the pilot walkout happen and which flights would be affected?
Passengers booked on summer flights on British Airways are about to learn whether their travel plans could be torn up by a strike by pilots at BA.For the past four weeks nearly 4,000 members of flight crew who belong to the British Airline Pilots’ Association (Balpa) have been voting on industrial action in a dispute over pay. This is how the next few days and weeks could play out. What is the dispute about?Pay. British Airways says it is offering a pay rise well above the rate of inflation. BA says: “We are pleased that the Unite and GMB trade unions, which represent nearly 90 per cent of all British Airways colleagues, have agreed to recommend this fair offer of 11.5 per cent over three years.”The airline also points to the number of job applications from pilots from other carriers, which it says are running at 1,000 per year, as an indication of how well its pilots are treated.But Brian Strutton, general secretary of Balpa, says: “BA has been enormously profitable, and the employees should have a fair share of that success which, after all, they produce for the company.”All but around 500 of the airline’s 4,500 pilots belong to Balpa. The current dispute covers pilots working at Heathrow and Gatwick. It does not involve the CityFlyer operation based at London City.As the pilots have been voting, sporadic negotiations have been going on between the two sides at the conciliation service Acas, but they broke off on Friday with no evidence of significant programs progress. What happens next?The Balpa strike ballot closes at noon on Monday 22 July, with the result expected early afternoon. The union is obliged to inform British Airways and its members first.History suggests the pilots will vote overwhelmingly in favour of industrial action. This is standard in aviation, and strengthens the negotiators’ hand. No industrial action will be announced immediately, because BA, as is now traditional in industrial disputes, is seeking a High Court injunction against Balpa on the grounds of legal technicalities involving the ballot.The hearing is scheduled for Tuesday morning.If BA wins the injunction, Balpa can call another ballot or re-start negotiations.If the application is rejected, then Balpa is likely to announce industrial action. The union is required two weeks’ notice, which means the earliest any strike could begin is Tuesday 6 August.While it is decades since British Airways’ pilots went on strike, in other dispute – both at BA and other airlines – is to call industrial action for one or more relatively brief spells rather than an indefinite walk-out. What is the likely effect of any strike?It depends how many pilots walk out. Another feature of strikes at British Airways over the past decade – mainly involving cabin crew – is that a significant proportion of union members continue to work.The airline will endeavour to maintain a near-normal service on some routes that have a combination of high loads and high fares, particular on key long-haul links from Heathrow and Mediterranean links from Gatwick, using non-striking pilots.Routes such as Heathrow-Miami could be particularly prioritised because of the large number of passengers using the link in connection with cruises.But many of the 700 or so British Airways flights each day could be grounded, affecting tens of thousands of passengers on strike days – and some on “adjacent” days. BA will not roster pilots who are going to strike to, say, Los Angeles if they would not be working on the day they are due to fly back.On very high-frequency links such as Heathrow-Geneva, services could be combined with larger aircraft used. Which flights would be cancelled?The airline is working on its plans, but in order to get as many passengers to their destinations as possible there are some obvious candidates for cancellation – starting with the Singapore-Sydney section of BA’s only Australian route. It consumes a lot of pilot time and alternative carriers are readily available.Links on which there are frequent flights on British Airways’ partner airlines are also likely to see deep cuts: US points served by American Airlines, Heathrow-Madrid and Gatwick-Barcelona, and of course Heathrow-Doha – where BA’s part-owner, Qatar Airways, has many daily flights. When would cancellations be announced?The best guess is: a few days ahead, with the possibility of added “on-the-day” disruption – partly because air-traffic congestion in Europe is likely to delay many flights once again in August. What options will be offered if my flight is cancelled?British Airways is obliged, under European air passengers’ rights rules, to get travellers to their destinations as swiftly as possible, buying tickets on other airlines – from easyJet to Emirates – if that is necessary.The big problem is: many flights are fully booked in August, a peak month for travel.The airline also has an unlimited duty of care, providing meals and accommodation until the passenger can be transported to their destination. But it will deflect claims for “consequential losses,” such as hotel or rental car expenses that cannot be used. Will I get compensation?Last year the Civil Aviation Authority was insistent that Ryanair should pay compensation of €250 or €400 per passenger, depending on the destination, and presumably it will urge any travellers affected by a British Airways strike to do the same; long-haul passengers would be entitled to €600. I can’t afford to wait to find out if my flight is cancelled. Should I book an alternative now?No. At present the airline is insisting normal terms and conditions apply for anyone who wants to change or cancel their flight.Were a strike to be called, it is likely that BA would allow some flexibility to passengers – for example offering full refunds, enabling travellers to seek alternative flights. But already fares on alternative airlines are increasing rapidly, as travellers making fresh arrangements book away from British Airways because of the strike threat. The dispute is already having an impact on bookings, which is a consequence of the strike ballot being called. Who will blink first?I sense that British Airways is prepared to take a strike rather than, as BA would see it, cave in. In the cabin crew dispute a decade ago, and more recently with the Mixed Fleet strikes, the airline has taken a relatively hard line. Surely an August strike would cause untold damage to British Airways’ revenue and profits?The cost-per-day could run into tens of millions of pounds, involving lost revenue, additional care costs and buying tickets on other airlines, but actually August is the optimum month for a strike from BA’s perspective. Business travel, which bankrolls the British Airways operation, is at a minimum. Would you buy a ticket on BA from 6 August onwards – and, if so, would you expect to reach your destination?Yes, and yes. But not necessarily on time.
British Airways has suspended all flights to Cairo for seven days as a security precaution.
The airline announced on Saturday evening that all flights into the Egyptian capital had been halted to allow for an assessment of security there.
“We constantly review our security arrangements at all our airports around the world, and have suspended flights to Cairo for seven days as a precaution to allow for further assessment,” a statement said.
“The safety and security of our customers and crew is always our priority, and we would never operate an aircraft unless it was safe to do so.”
A spokesperson for the airline declined to provide further information about the suspensions, saying the company did not comment on security matters.
Three Egyptian airport security sources told the Reuters news agency that British staff were checking security at Cairo airport on Wednesday and Thursday.
It is understood British Airways made the Department for Transport aware of its decision ahead of the announcement.
A government spokesperson said: “We are aware that British Airways is notifying passengers that it has decided to suspend flights to Cairo temporarily.”
Cairo Airport website’s arrivals page listed flight BA155 from London, due to arrive in Terminal 2 at 11.15pm local time, as cancelled.
The British Foreign Office advises against all but essential travel by air to and from the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, but has not issued similar warnings against air travel to and from Cairo.
“An estimated 415,000 British nationals visited Egypt in 2018,” according to the website’s advice page, which was last updated on Friday. “Most visits are trouble free.
“Terrorists are very likely to try to carry out attacks in Egypt. Although most attacks occur in North Sinai, there is a risk of terrorist attacks across the country.”
Some affected passengers used social media to share pictures which appeared to show a letter handed out by British Airways with a similar message about security.
