BA gets last-minute go-ahead to wet-lease Qatar planes during strike
British Airways has been given the go-ahead to wet-lease nine Qatar Airways’ aircraft to fly passengers while its 1,400 mixed fleet cabin crew are on strike.
The permission from the Department for Transport for BA to use the aircraft came on Friday, just hours before the BA crew, all members of the Unite union, began their two-week walk-out.
A spokesman said it had approved the arrangement with Qatar after taking advice from the Civil Aviation Authority.
BA will use nine Qatar Airbus A320 and A321s, which it is leasing with their crew for the two-week period.
Qatar, which owns 20% of BA’s parent IAG, has been looking for alternative uses for its aircraft since four Arab nations began a boycott of Qatar on June 5, blocking the carrier’s flights.
BA’s mixed fleet crew are on strike until July 16 due to a long-running pay dispute with the airline.
BA insists all passengers will reach their destinations, but it has cancelled some flights and re-booked passengers onto alternative departures.
"We will operate 99.5% of our schedule and have merged a very small number of Heathrow long-haul services. Affected customers are being notified of their new flight details," it said today.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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