LH charters 5Y. Strike busting?
Strike-hit LH Cargo to charter Atlas freighter
FRANKFURT, May 9 (Reuters) - Lufthansa Cargo <LHAG.F> said on Wednesday it will charter a Boeing 747 freighter from U.S. carrier Atlas Air <CGO.N> to provide extra capacity during the planned 24-hour Lufthansa pilots' strike on Thursday.
The Atlas-operated, 100-tonne capacity aircraft would transport freight which would normally have been flown on Lufthansa intercontinental passenger flights, company spokesman Dietrich Seidl told Reuters.
But he declined to say what destination the flight would operate to on Thursday.
Industry sources, however, said Hong Kong or another Asian destination could be served.
Lufthansa Cargo will otherwise follow a similar strategy on Thursday to the 12-hour pilots' stoppage last Friday and will try to minimise impact by changing freighter departure schedules, using management pilots and switching freight to road transport, Seidl said.
"The action last week was a success for us and we are confident we will be able to implement everything with little impact for customers," he said.
Lufthansa Cargo will again bring forward some freighter departures to before midnight when the pilots' strike begins and delay some flights until after the action finishes 24 hours later.
"During the strike period, there will be some freighter flights flown with management pilots. We will also have an extra B747F flight to New York for belly freight," Seidl said.
Last Friday, Lufthansa Cargo operated two cargo flights to the key markets of New York and Chicago with management pilots and an additional Frankfurt-New York flight with freight normally carried bellyhold on the passenger flights.
European and domestic air freight shipments will again be transferred to road feeder services on Thursday using additional trucking capacity bought in from trucking companies.
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