German flight-attendant union UFO has called for industrial action at Lufthansa on 20 October and indicated potential further strikes across the group's German-based carriers. The planned strike will cover Lufthansa flights at the airline's hubs in Frankfurt and Munich for a 5h period from 6:00am local time, the union says. UFO deputy chief Daniel Flohr said in a video message today that consultations will take place this week with the union's negotiation teams at group carriers about the possibility of "open-ended" strikes across group "at any time". He says that the union will call for "action at every group airline" to achieve its objectives. The dispute covers staff at Lufthansa, budget units Germanwings and Eurowings, regional arm CityLine, and the Frankfurt-based operation of Lufthansa's leisure joint venture with Turkish Airlines, SunExpress. Further strike action will "solely depend on whether Lufthansa will return to the negotiation table", Flohr says. The airline and union previously discussed employment terms, but the dispute escalated in 2018 over the installation of a new leadership team at UFO. Flohr asserts that Lufthansa has prohibited talks with the union in relation to any group carrier and has threatened legal action against staff participating in the union's strike activities. In August, Lufthansa filed a motion with a regional labour court in Frankfurt to "legally determine the union status of UFO". The airline argues that both UFO's status as a union and the "authority" of its leadership to represent employees "remain unclear". Lufthansa therefore deems the planned strike action illegal and says that talks with the union are "not possible". The carrier is considering taking legal action against the planned strike. Lufthansa says it has "no need" to amend its schedule and intends to operate a "full flight programme" on 20 October.

Source: FlightGlobal

The Southwest Airlines Pilots Association (SWAPA) does not expect that the Boeing 737 Max aircraft will return to service with the carrier before February 2020. The Dallas-based airline has removed 737 Max 8s from its flight schedules through to 6 January. However SWAPA president Jon Weaks says in a letter to its members that "we are looking at probably a February timeframe to say the least", based on the pace Boeing is coordinating on modifications with the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Numerous steps must be completed for the FAA and other regulators to deem 737 Max aircraft safe to return to service in the wake of two fatal crashes. The pilot union has applied to be included in the FAA simulator testing of the modified 737 Max. Southwest will give its pilots 30 days for training to fly the modified 737 Max aircraft before the airline reintroduces them into its schedules, Weaks says. "Our best estimate is late October for the simulator testing and early to mid-November for the certification flight or flights," Weaks adds, noting that these are "best case" scenarios. The union's expectations for a drawn-out return to service are driven in part by reports from the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Joint Authorities Technical Review Panel (JATR) that criticised the FAA and Boeing for not adequately preparing pilots to fly Max jets. The FAA and regulators in other nations have not set timelines on when to return 737 Max aircraft to service, but Weaks says the two reports while not officially linked with the return to service "obviously will have some input indirectly". The FAA formed the JATR to analyse the agency's initial certification of the Max. It and the NTSB both reported that the FAA and Boeing made faulty assumptions about how pilots would respond to the Max's automated flight control software that investigators say is a key factor in the two fatal crashes.

Source: FlightGlobal

Investigators have commenced a probe into an accident at Wilson airport, in western Nairobi, involving a Silverstone Air Services Fokker 50 turboprop. The aircraft had been departing Wilson for Mombasa and onwards to Lamu at around 09:00 on 11 October. Kenya Airports Authority says the aircraft "veered off the runway" during take-off. It came to rest on rough ground, in a patch of bushes, suffering substantial damage. Two of the 55 occupants – comprising 50 passengers and five crew members – were injured, says the authority. "We are currently working with the relevant authorities to assess the situation," says Silverstone Air. Meteorological data from Wilson airport indicates good visibility and no adverse weather conditions. Silverstone Air operates a mixed fleet which also includes Bombardier turboprops, and serves several domestic routes.

Source: FlightGlobal