Pilots and flight attendants at the Lufthansa Group’s leisure carrier, Discover Airlines, will hold a coordinated four-day strike between Tuesday, August 27, and Friday, August 30, in a continuing dispute over pay and conditions.
Discover Airlines was created in September 2023 as Lufthansa’s new leisure-orientated carrier, operating both short-haul and long-haul services from its Frankfurt hub.
Critics of the airline argue that Discover Airlines was created with the sole purpose of saving money for Germany’s Lufthansa Group by hiring staff on lower wages and with poorer terms and conditions than their peers at the group’s namesake mainline airline.
Waves of strike action have plagued Discover Airlines since it was created, with pilots taking part in walkouts in December 2023 and January 2024 over delays in agreeing to a collective bargaining agreement.
The latest walkout will be the longest yet, with pilots and flight attendants expected to refuse to work on any Discover flight scheduled to depart from a German airport between the start of Tuesday and the end of Friday.
The Vereinigung Cockpit union, which represents pilots at Discover, said in a short statement that the aim of the strike was to conclude a collective pay agreement and a general collective agreement for its members at the carrier.
Meanwhile, the UFO union, which represents flight attendants, said it had become increasingly frustrated with Discover’s unwillingness to negotiate and instead try to pick a different union for cabin crew at the airline.
The UFO has listed a slew of demands, including guaranteeing cabin crew more days off per month and increased vacation days, as well as providing more schedule stability and improving pay for flight attendants.
A spokesperson for Discover Airlines said the carrier was trying to avoid flight disruption but warned passengers to check the status of their flight in the event flight cancellations. The airline did not comment on the status of contract negotiations.
