Thousands of air passengers face travel misery today after moves to prevent a three-day strike by British Airways cabin crew collapsed.
Thousands of BA staff walked out from midnight in a bitter row over cost-cutting, with a four-day stoppage planned from March 27 and further action expected from mid-April unless the deadlock is broken.
In Aberdeen, 17 out of the 26 flights scheduled between the north-east and London Heathrow were cancelled.
On the Aberdeen to Heathrow route, cancellations will affect the 8.15am, 5.15pm and the 8.20pm flights on Sunday and the 6.30am, 9.40am, 3pm, 5.15pm and the 8.20pm flights on Monday.
From Heathrow to Aberdeen, flights were cancelled at 8.15pm today, 2.55pm, 6,05pm and 8.15pm on Sunday and at 6.55am, noon, 2.55pm, 6.05pm and 8.15pm on Monday.
Slim hopes of a last-minute deal were shattered when three days of talks between chief executive Willie Walsh and Unite’s joint leader Tony Woodley ended in acrimony.
Mr Woodley said he was extremely disappointed the talks at the TUC headquarters in London had failed and accused BA of wanting a “war” with the union.
He said BA had tabled a worse offer than one withdrawn last week after the union announced this weekend’s strike, adding: “I am extremely disappointed for the travelling public and our members, but this union will now support our members, while remaining open for talks with the company.
“It is with great disappointment that I have to say the strike will go ahead.”
Mr Walsh left the TUC a few minutes after Mr Woodley, describing the industrial action as “completely unjustified”.
He said: “It is deeply regrettable that a proposal I have tabled to Unite, which I believe is fair and sensible and addresses all the concerns of cabin crew, has not been accepted.
“The offer remains available, but it will be withdrawn once industrial action commences. Tens of thousands of BA people now stand ready to serve our customers. BA will be flying tomorrow and will continue to fly through these periods of industrial action.”
Mr Walsh agreed that the new deal tabled in the current round of talks was not the same as the one withdrawn last week, arguing that BA had incurred “significant” extra expense because of the cost of its contingency plans and the number of passengers who have cancelled flights. He confirmed strikers would lose their travel perks, which includes one free trip anywhere in the world once a year subject to availability, for more senior staff.
Mr Walsh said BA would now put in place its “extensive” contingency plans, which include the use of 23 fully-crewed planes leased from other companies.
BA said it was confident of handling as many as 49,000 passengers on each of the first two planned strike days, which compares with a figure of around 75,000 for a normal weekend day in March.
BA’s new offer involved a four-year pay deal, freezing wages in year one, giving 3% rises in years two and three and an increase in 2013-14 based on RPI inflation but capped at 4%.