Air France pilots ended a two-week strike Sunday but did so without resolving its fight with the company. The SNPL, Air France’s main pilots union, simply gave up and flights are expected to resume in a couple of days. The pilots walked out to pressure the airline into covering pilots of its new budget carrier Transavia with the same contract as those on the main line. The airline refused, saying that would be “incompatible” with the low-cost model for the new airline. The union hasn’t said why it suddenly ended the strike. It’s also not clear where the talks will go from here.
The walkout is estimated to have directly cost Air France more than $250 million in lost revenue, not to mention the loss of future bookings. Flights will not resume immediately. Most of the airline’s aircraft were idle during the strike and will have to be inspected before flight. Flight crews will also have to fulfill minimum crew rest requirements before they can fly again.
