DALLAS — British Airways (BA) has reached a preliminary agreement with its pilots' union, ensuring that there won't be any strikes until 2027. This preliminary agreement marks a significant milestone for BA as it strives to overcome the travel downturn resulting from the global COVID-19 pandemic.

We can recall that BA faced criticism for its treatment of staff during the pandemic, eventually reversing its decision to dismiss and rehire all 4,300 cockpit crew members. In response to questions in Parliament last year regarding travel delays, Lisa Tremble, the Corporate Affairs Director, acknowledged the company's efforts to rebuild trust with both staff and customers.

By rescinding the pay cuts that were imposed during the pandemic, the company successfully averted a pilots' strike in October of last year. Members of the British Airline Pilots' Association will vote on the current tentative agreement, which builds upon the aforementioned pay and working-condition changes.

According to bnnbloomberg.ca, the airline's fortunes have been on the rise since it implemented pay cuts for pilots during the pandemic. Its parent company, IAG SA, reported better-than-expected earnings in the second quarter of this year, attributing the success to BA's performance on North Atlantic routes from London Heathrow airport (LHR).

Overall, IAG anticipates that capacity will be back to 97% of pre-COVID levels by the end of this year.

This agreement with the pilots follows a separate deal made in August with 24,000 other staff members, entailing a 13.1% pay increase over an 18-month period.

Featured image: British Airways

https://airwaysmag.com/american-airlines-pilots-approve-9b-contract/