Lufthansa pilots begin strike

Lufthansa pilots began the first of two days of strike action yesterday in a long-running dispute over early retirement benefits and cost-cutting plans which shows no sign of ending.

The German airline is trying to cut costs and expand budget operations as it tries to compete with low-cost carriers such as Ryanair and easyJet in Europe and Gulf rivals such as Emirates.

However, attempts to renegotiate collective labour deals, including retirement benefits, have been resisted by pilots at union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC), which staged 10 strikes last year.