BERLIN, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- German airline group Lufthansa canceled hundreds of flights on Thursday as pilots and cabin crew staged a coordinated strike over pay and working conditions.
At Germany's largest airport in Frankfurt, 450 of 1,117 departures were canceled, while 275 of 920 flights from Munich were also grounded, according to German news agency dpa.
The airline said the travel plans of approximately 100,000 passengers were affected by the all-day action, which was called by the German Airline Pilots' Association and the flight attendants' union UFO.
Lufthansa described the walkout as hitting passengers "extremely hard and disproportionately." "We expect to be able to offer the normal flight schedule again from Friday," the airline said.
Around 4,800 pilots at Lufthansa and its cargo subsidiary, Lufthansa Cargo, joined the strike over a dispute regarding higher company pensions. Cabin crew is also staging a warning strike to force negotiations on several collective bargaining issues.
Passengers have been advised not to travel to the airport without first checking their flight status. ■
