BA resumes business after two-day strike

The strike, which was called by the British Airline Pilots’ Association (BALPA), led to almost 1,700 flights being cancelled and is believed to have affected around 195,000 passengers.

It ended at midnight on Tuesday 10 September but, although BA is now resuming business, further delays are expected. "The nature of our highly complex, global operation means that it will take some time to get back to a completely normal flight schedule; however, we plan to fly more than 90 per cent of our flights today," the airline said today (Wednesday 11 September).

According to BA, nearly 150 aircraft, 700 pilots and 4,000 cabin crew are in the wrong location, and the knock-on effect of the strike is expected to continue over the next few days.

BA apologised to those affected, with a spokesperson saying: "We are very sorry for the disruption BALPA’s industrial action has caused our customers. We are doing everything we can to get back to normal and to get our customers to their destinations.” Customers who have been affected by the strike are being offered refunds or the option to re-book their travel for another date and/or with another airline.

BALPA tweeted about the strike: “These two days of strike action have been a powerful demonstration of the strength of feeling of BA pilots who have been virtually 100-per-cent solid in supporting the strike. We urge BA to get back to the negotiating table with some meaningful proposals to try to avert the next scheduled strike on 27 September. Should BA refuse meaningful negotiations, further strike dates will be considered by the BALPA National Executive.”