BASSA have put out a clarifying message to members regarding the Lufthansa article, it has been forwarded to me.
It uses words such as "Mr Jorg Handwerg is reported to have said" note the use of the word "reported"
further is goes on; "He also told UNITE"
Who at UNITE, and how many heard him say it? At the moment its basically hearsay.
A colleague of mine whom has membership of the REUTERS website has been in communication with them and as of now they have been unable to substantiate the claims made in the BASSA news article. That's not to say they won't be able to.
Until something more substantial is produced I will treat this as just typical BASSA bluster. Embellish a personal statement(spell the authors name wrong) that cannot be substantiated (later claiming that it was, perhaps lost in translation) then attribute it to a well known and prestigious news organisation to add to its authenticity............ damage done!