Low-cost airline Ryanair has cancelled 600 flights scheduled for the coming week due to the threat of impending strikes by cabin crew, the carrier announced Wednesday.
Some 50,000 passengers will be affected by the cancellations next Wednesday and Thursday, Ryanair said on Twitter.
The move would affect 200 flights to and from Spain on each of the days, as well as 50 each for Portugal and Belgium, together accounting for around 12 per cent of the airline's total European flight network.
Ryanair's flight attendants are walking out following a call by the cabin crews' respective unions in each of the three countries.
Whether German airports are affected by the failures, the airline could not say. Affected passengers would be informed.
Ryanair's employees are seeking higher salaries and an improvement in working conditions. The company's Irish pilots are also planning to strike this Friday and next Tuesday.
Affected passengers were informed by e-mail or text messages, and have been offered re-bookings or a full refund, Ryanair said.
According to company spokesman Kenny Jacobs, the strikes were unjustified, and would only disrupt family vacations and benefit the competition.
The flight attendants currently receive salaries of up to 40,000 euros (46,600 dollars) a year, he added.
