Confusion as BA strike called

Talks to avert a strike by British Airways pilots broke down on Friday, with the BALPA union immediately giving notice of industrial action on 9, 10 and 27 September in pursuit of a pay claim.

BALPA said it had put forward a number of packages it believed would have resolved the dispute and which it could have recommended to its members but BA had not accepted any of them.

The union added: “A day of strike action will cost BA around £40m. Three days will cost in the region of £120m. The gap between BA’s position and BALPA’s is about £5m. Our proposal remains on the table should BA wish to reach agreement prior to strike action.”

The BBC reported yesterday (Sunday) BA passengers were angry they couldn’t get through to the airline following confusion over cancelled flights after BA admitted on Saturday it had told some passengers by mistake to rebook or get a refund.

After initially sending one email to customers listing cancellations, BA then sent a second to some people saying their flights would go ahead as planned, the BBC said – but in the second email failed to give passengers a link to rebook their original flights automatically, meaning they had to contact BA directly.

www.britishairways.com

www.balpa.org

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OUR READERS' FINEST WORDS (All times and dates are GMT)

All comments are filtered to exclude any excesses but the Editor does not have to agree with what is being said. 100 words maximum

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Peter Davis, UK/Windsor

BA should withdraw from its Spanish owners and reform as a 100% British company.

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Michael Preston, Weybridge/Cape Town

Yet another disaster presided over by Alex Cruz, who should take the ultimate responsibility for this and the string of epic failures that have affected BA's passengers in the last few years. He has dragged BA down to a pale shadow of the proud and excellent airline it once was, a tragedy for its many hardworking and loyal employees. He has taken cost-cutting beyond sustainable levels, and it is time for him to go.

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