In response to impending industrial action by pilots, Aer Lingus intends to cancel up to 20% of its flights starting next Wednesday. The pilots, who belong to the Irish Airline Pilots’ Association (Ialpa), are pressing for an approximately 24% pay raise by enforcing a strict adherence to work schedules from June 26th, a strategy that threatens to disrupt flights and passengers.
This Thursday, the airline announced that it would suspend between 10% and 20% of flights for the initial five days of the industrial action in an attempt to preserve as many services as they can. As of next Wednesday, Ialpa pilots operating in the Republic will strictly adhere to published rosters, refraining from doing any overtime or duties outside of working hours.
This adherence implies a refusal to answer calls from managers outside of work hours, rejecting any modifications to the roster, and not agreeing to any requests for out of hours work. Such restrictions will hinder Aer Lingus’s capacity to manage regular delays and other issues, specifically during this period of the year. More updates will be provided as the situation evolves.