Low cost carrier Norwegian faced a strike by pilots at its Scandinavian subsidiary over the weekend after the breakdown of talks over cost cuts.
Pilots from administration roles and from subsidiaries were put on standby “to ensure that only a limited number of passengers are affected,” the airline said.
Norwegian said its goal was to operate all flights on Saturday and Sunday as planned, as only a limited number of pilots were on strike. A estimated 70 walked out over the weekend.
The conflict only affected Norwegian’s subsidiary, Norwegian Air Norway.
The action by the Norwegian pilot union Parat came after the airline refused to meet demands for a collective labour agreement with the parent company, rather than simply with its Norwegian subsidiary.
“Prior to the mediation, Norwegian had proposed several essential cost reductions to ensure a sustainable company and secure jobs in the future,” the airline said. “Unfortunately, Parat did not meet these criteria. Instead, they had demands that conflicted with the collective agreement signed in 2013.”
Norwegian chief executive Bjørn Kjos said: “We would like to apologise to our passengers for the uncertainty this situation has caused.
“Our goal has always been to avoid a strike. Our wish has been to work out a common platform that takes into account the tough competition in the industry, secure everyone’s jobs and build a strong company for the future.
“We will now do everything we can to ensure that all our passengers are taken care of in the best possible way.”
Norwegian’s long-haul routes from Scandinavia and England and the US to Asia were planned to operate as normal.