Air France expects to operate less than half of its flights today (Monday) as pilots start a week-long strike.
The industrial action is expected to cost the airline between €10-€20 million a day.
Air France urged passengers to check the status of their flight before leaving for the airport and modify travel plans to avoid the September 15-22 period if possible.
“On September 15, our flight schedule is updated.
We expect to operate 48% of our flights. Last minute disturbances are not excluded,” the airline said.
Codeshare partner Flybe warned of potential knock-on effects and offered the option for booked passengers to change or postpone flights to avoid the strike period at no additional charge.
The regional carrier said that “to ensure that passengers experience the least possible disruption during this period of industrial action that is entirely out of our control, if you are booked with Flybe on a flight operated by Air France during this time, you can choose to re-schedule your departure to avoid the period 15 – 22 September 2014.”
The dispute at Air France centres on company plans to cut costs to recapture market share from budget airlines by using the Transavia leisure brand.
The airline has said it is open to negotiation on benefits tied to seniority and incentives for pilots who transfer to Transavia, but will not yield to unions demanding that the labour contracts of Transavia pilots carry the same terms as those flying under the Air France brand.