Lufthansa pilots strike
Germany’s pilots’ union called a two‑day Lufthansa strike for April 13–14 that has grounded hundreds of flights and left thousands stranded. (Reports say about 500 flights were grounded and roughly 90,000 passengers affected, while commentators also counted 261 cancelled flights and 1,446 delays across several European countries as the disruption spread.) (euronews.com) (travelandtourworld.com) (travelandtourworld.com)
Lufthansa pilots began a 48-hour strike on Monday, April 13, forcing Germany’s biggest airline to cancel hundreds of flights. (dw.com) The walkout was called by Vereinigung Cockpit, the pilots’ union, and runs from 12:01 a.m. local time on April 13 to 11:59 p.m. on April 14 for Lufthansa, Lufthansa Cargo and Lufthansa CityLine. Eurowings pilots were called out for April 13 only. (vcockpit.de) Lufthansa said the strike-hit airlines would operate about one-third of their short-haul schedule and 50 percent of long-haul flights during the stoppage. Eurowings said it planned to operate about 60 percent of its schedule on Monday. (lufthansaexperts.com) Frankfurt and Munich, Lufthansa’s two main hubs, were hit hardest on Monday. Deutsche Welle reported that Frankfurt’s departures board showed most Lufthansa flights within Europe canceled, while Munich warned passengers of severe disruption. (dw.com) The dispute is centered on labor contracts, especially pensions, and comes after the union said Lufthansa management had not presented an acceptable offer. Vereinigung Cockpit President Andreas Pinheiro said the union had avoided striking over the Easter holidays but still did not receive what it considered serious proposals. (vcockpit.de) This is the fourth strike to hit Lufthansa and some subsidiaries in 2026, according to Deutsche Welle, and it came just days after a separate cabin crew walkout. Reuters, cited by multiple outlets, said the new stoppage followed another round of failed talks over pay and pensions. (dw.com) (msn.com) Not every Lufthansa Group airline is involved. Lufthansa said Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Swiss, Air Dolomiti, Discover Airlines, Edelweiss and Lufthansa City Airlines were not affected by this strike call. (lufthansaexperts.com) Some routes were also carved out of the stoppage. The union exempted flights from Germany to 13 destinations in the Middle East, including Israel, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, citing the regional security situation. (vcockpit.de) (dw.com) For passengers, Lufthansa said canceled tickets can be rebooked once without a fee or refunded, and domestic German Lufthansa flights can be swapped for Deutsche Bahn rail tickets. The airline also told travelers to check flight status before leaving for the airport. (lufthansaexperts.com) Lufthansa said it was trying to shift as many flights as possible to other Lufthansa Group and partner airlines. For stranded travelers on April 13 and April 14, that fallback plan became the difference between a delay and a canceled trip. (lufthansa.com)
