Aer Lingus customers to find out if flights cancelled
Some passengers who have booked summer flights with Aer Lingus are to find out if their flights have been cancelled due to industrial action by pilots.
On Thursday the airline announced that it would have to cancel between 10% and 20% of flights over the first five days of the action.
The action is being taken by members of the Irish Airline Pilots Association (IALPA).
Irish national broadcaster RTÉ reported that the strikes are thought to impact up to 40,000 passengers due to fly with the airline from 26 June and 2 July.
In a statement, Aer Lingus said that implementing the cancellations would enable the company to "protect as many services as possible for as many of our customers as possible".
However regional services to and from Belfast and Great Britain during this period "will not be affected by any industrial relations action and will operate as scheduled," according to the airline.
Pilots who are members of the IALPA voted 99% in support of action, up to and including a strike.
Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland about how long work to rule would continue, IALPA President Captain Mark Tighe said it would depend on Aer Lingus.
He said talks had been going on for 22 months and added that the 24% pay rise which is being sought is an "accumulative increase of inflation over time".
He told the show that while the pay structure for Aer Lingus pilots was similar to other airlines the top end of the scale could only be reached after 26 years.
Aer Lingus said that: "IALPA's industrial action will have a wholly unnecessary impact on customers who are travelling in the coming weeks, at what is peak holiday season for families.
"The nature of this industrial action will cause a significant impact on our flight schedules."
-bbc
