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Italy's flag carrier Alitalia said Tuesday it will cancel 74 flights on Thursday because flight attendants are planning a daylong strike.
Alitalia said it will cancel 26 national flights and 48 international flights, but did not give details on the flights' destinations or origins.
Union officials have said the strike was planned because of concerns about restructuring plans at the money-losing airline, in which the Italian government holds a majority stake.Cabin crews have walked off their jobs several times in recent months. In October, a four-hour strike staged by flight attendants forced Alitalia to cancel 138 flights.
The Rome-based airline operates 190 aircraft and flies to 500 destinations in more than 100 countries.
However....
Reports out of Italy the other day showed possible signs of improvement especially for the Olympic ceremonies. Italian unions signed a nationwide “truce” Wednesday in which they pledged not to strike during the Torino Games.
The truce will “force the postponement of an Alitalia airline strike scheduled for the day of the opening ceremony.” Prior to the truce, however, a union official said that workers “would need something really concrete from Alitalia” to avert a strike. "The Olympics are important, but our dispute is also important," the official said Tuesday.
USA Today
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This story is worth keeping an eye on. Some comflicting reports are coming out of Italy. I would hope the airline and the unions can come to some sort of agreement in order to keep flying during the Olympics. The loss of just one days worth of flights in and out of Italy could mean a loss of millions for the airline, not to mention a nightmare regarding negitive press from not only a national press but an international press.
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