Air France week-long strike to see cancellations

Air France said Tuesday a week-long strike from Wednesday by flight crews will see the carrier scrap 30 percent of domestic and medium-haul flights at the height of the busy holiday period.

Some 35 percent of flight attendants, who account for 13,600 of Air France's 50,000-strong workforce, are expected to join a stoppage which the airline said would affect some 10 percent of long-haul flights.

Unions representing around half of the strikers last Friday said they stoppage would go ahead as marathon talks failed to bring a breakthrough on renewing a collective labour accord on rules, pay and promotions which expires in October.

Management want to limit the extension of the agreement to 17 months, whereas unions want between three and five years.

Flights to destinations in Europe, North Africa and Israel will be affected, as well as some routes in Asia and Africa, the company said Monday.

In late June the CEO of the Air France-KLM group, Jean-Marc Janaillac, warded off a pilots' strike that would have been the second such stoppage during the Euro football tournament.

The pilots' last strike, which grounded around 20 percent of flights on June 11-14, hit France as it was gripped by social unrest over a series of disputed labour reforms from the Socialist government.