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Frankfurt Airport Returning to Normal. Spanish Airports? Not So Much.
I wanted to update you on the travel situation in Europe, which continues to be impacted by strikes.
First, the good news. After initially planning to extend their strike into the weekend, ground staff at Frankfurt Airport are ending their work stopped at 9 p.m. this evening local time. Talks are resuming between the union and Fraport, the airport operating authority. But don't be too optimistic. This strike started after Fraport rejected a mediator's settlement proposal, so this could be a difficult negotiation. There doesn't seem to be a lot of goodwill or trust on either side.
Meanwhile, the strike has continued to take its toll on airport operations in Frankfurt, the key continental Europe hub of Lufthansa and the Star Alliance and one of the busiest airports in the world.
According to FlightStats.com, 161 flights have been canceled and 263 delayed so far. On Tuesday, a total of 187 were canceled and 242 delayed. Monday's numbers were substantially worse: 230 cancels and 330 delays.
Over in Spain, where pilots for Iberia are mounting a series of one-day strikes, the next job action is scheduled for this Friday and next Wednesday, February 29. On Monday, the most recent strike day, Iberia canceled a huge chunk of its schedule, including some transatlantic flights. The airline has already posted a preliminary list of future cancellations.
Once again, here is your contact information:
- FRANKFURT AIRPORT http://www.frankfurt-airport.com/content/frankfurt_airport/en.html
- LUFTHANSA http://www.lufthansa.com
- MADRID AIRPORT http://www.aena-aeropuertos.es/csee/Satellite/Aeropuerto-Madrid-Barajas/en/
- IBERIA AIRLINES http://www.iberia.com/
If you want to follow the situation on Twitter, which often has more news than the relevant homepages, here are your links:
- FRANKFURT AIRPORT http://twitter.com/Airport_FRA
- LUFTHANSA http://twitter.com/Lufthansa_USA
- IBERIA http://twitter.com/Iberia_en
If you want to brief yourself on the background, try my column from two weeks ago. And don't forget to check the excellent FlightStats.com page that covers global conditions, cancellations, and delays.
Joe Brancatelli writes Portfolio.com’s business travel column, Seat 2B. Brancatelli is the former executive editor of Frequent Flyer magazine and operates the membership site JoeSentMe.com. You can reach him at jbrancatelli@portfolio.com.
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