Air travel across Germany faces major disruption as pilots and cabin crew at Lufthansa prepare for a coordinated 24 hour strike that will hit the heart of Europe’s aviation network. The walkout, scheduled for Thursday 12 February 2026, is the latest escalation in a bitter dispute over pensions, job security and the future structure of Germany’s largest airline. With unions promising to halt almost all departures from German airports under the Lufthansa brand and its cargo arm, passengers are being urged to prepare for cancellations, diversions and lengthy delays.
What Travellers Need to Know About the 24 Hour Walkout
The strike will run from 00:01 to 23:59 local time on Thursday 12 February and is expected to affect virtually all flights operated by Lufthansa and Lufthansa Cargo departing from German airports. Regional operator Lufthansa CityLine is also directly involved through the cabin crew union, meaning short haul connectivity within Europe will be particularly hard hit. German hubs in Frankfurt and Munich, both critical transfer points for intercontinental journeys, are braced for a near standstill on mainline Lufthansa services.
Although some details are still being finalised, industry estimates suggest that up to several hundred flights could be cancelled during the 24 hour period, with ripple effects lasting into Friday as aircraft and crews are repositioned. Lufthansa has already begun pre emptive cancellations and rebooking efforts, focusing on long haul connections and dense European trunk routes where alternative capacity can sometimes be found on partner airlines.
Passengers booked to travel on 12 February from any German airport on a Lufthansa operated or Lufthansa Cargo flight should assume their itinerary is at significant risk and monitor their booking status closely. Travellers using other carriers, including some of Lufthansa’s low cost competitors and independent foreign airlines, may still face indirect disruption as congestion builds at terminals and air traffic control manages revised schedules.
Who Is Striking: Pilots, Cabin Crew and the Unions Behind Them
The industrial action brings together two of Germany’s most influential aviation unions. Vereinigung Cockpit, which represents approximately 4,800 Lufthansa pilots, has called the 24 hour strike after months of fruitless talks over retirement benefits and working conditions. Its members voted in a strike ballot last autumn to authorise action should negotiations fail to deliver improvements to company funded pensions and bridge pension arrangements.
Alongside the pilots, the Independent Flight Attendants’ Organisation, widely known by its German acronym UFO, has called cabin crew at Lufthansa and its regional subsidiary CityLine into a simultaneous walkout. UFO’s dispute focuses on job security, social protection and what it describes as a lack of credible guarantees for around 800 positions threatened by the group’s current restructuring strategy.
By coordinating their timetables, the two unions have created a rare joint front that dramatically amplifies the strike’s impact. Previous disputes at Lufthansa have often involved only one professional group at a time, but this action is designed to hit both cockpit and cabin operations simultaneously, making it far harder for the airline to maintain even a reduced schedule.
The Core of the Dispute: Pensions, Pay and Job Security
At the heart of the pilots’ grievance is a long running argument over the erosion of pension rights as Lufthansa reshapes its cost base in a fiercely competitive European market. Until 2017, flight crews benefited from a traditional defined benefit pension, which guaranteed a fixed payout based on salary and service length. That system was replaced with a capital market funded model tied more closely to investment performance and employer contributions, a shift unions say has undermined long term retirement security.
Vereinigung Cockpit argues that inflation and the legacy of pandemic related cuts have left the current pension contributions far below what would be required to ensure a comparable level of income in old age. The union has been pressing for a significant increase in the company’s monthly payments into occupational and bridge pension schemes. Management has pushed back, insisting that the demands would inflate annual pension costs to unsustainable levels at a time when the airline is still working to repair its balance sheet.
For cabin crew, the dispute is less about pension arithmetic and more about the future shape of the Lufthansa group. UFO accuses the airline of pursuing a strategy that shifts flying from long established, unionised operations like CityLine into newly created subsidiaries such as City Airlines and Discover that operate with lower pay scales and leaner collective agreements. The union wants a binding social plan for affected staff, including clear severance terms and transparent pathways into equivalent roles elsewhere in the group, rather than what it sees as vague promises of transfers on inferior conditions.
Lufthansa’s Position: Financial Pressure and Restructuring Plans
Lufthansa’s management has framed the dispute in the context of an industry still dealing with the financial aftershocks of the Covid 19 pandemic and rising structural costs. While the group has returned to profit, executives point to thin margins, aircraft delivery delays, high airport charges and ongoing investment requirements as reasons for holding the line on labour costs. The airline has proposed more modest wage increases and one off payments, coupled with limited pension adjustments, arguing that more generous settlements would weaken its competitive position against low cost rivals and non European carriers.
In recent years the group has embarked on a wide ranging restructuring, consolidating administrative functions and reducing thousands of back office positions. It has also launched or expanded subsidiaries that can operate at lower cost, particularly on short and medium haul routes within Europe. This approach is intended to defend Lufthansa’s market share against budget airlines while preserving premium products on long haul and key business routes, but it has fuelled deep unease among existing staff who see it as a path to gradual outsourcing of their work.
Management insists that flexibility is needed to keep the airline attractive to investors and to fund long term projects such as fleet renewal and new cabin products. Union leaders respond that employees who helped the company survive its worst crisis in decades are now being asked to shoulder an unfair share of the adjustment, especially when it comes to retirement security and the protection of mid career workers in regional operations.
Expected Impact on German Hubs and Global Connections
Frankfurt and Munich, Lufthansa’s twin intercontinental hubs, are preparing for what could be one of the most severe single day disruptions since the pandemic. Industry forecasts suggest that the majority of Lufthansa branded departures could be cancelled or severely delayed on Thursday 12 February, effectively shutting down much of the airline’s long haul network for the day. Key routes to North America, Asia, the Middle East and Africa will be affected, as well as feeder flights bringing passengers in from across Europe to connect.
Secondary German airports including Berlin, Düsseldorf, Hamburg and Stuttgart will also see widespread cancellations on Lufthansa and Lufthansa CityLine services. While some other carriers serving these airports are not directly involved in the strike, their operations may still be complicated by crowded airspace, rebooked passengers and longer turnaround times as airport infrastructure strains under the pressure.
Cargo operations are not spared. Lufthansa Cargo, an important player in global air freight, will halt most departures from German gateways during the strike period. This could temporarily disrupt supply chains reliant on just in time deliveries, particularly for high value goods such as pharmaceuticals, automotive components and electronics that often move through Frankfurt’s cargo facilities.
What Affected Passengers Can Do Now
Travellers scheduled to fly on 12 February with Lufthansa or Lufthansa Cargo from any German airport should act now to minimise disruption. The first step is to review the latest status of their booking using the airline’s official channels or their travel agent. Lufthansa is in the process of notifying affected customers and offering free rebooking options, either onto other dates with the airline, onto rail services for domestic routes, or, where possible, onto partner carriers that are not impacted by the strike.
For those whose journeys are essential and cannot be postponed, exploring alternative routings that avoid German departure points may be necessary. This could involve rebooking via other European hubs such as Amsterdam, Paris, Zurich or Vienna with airlines not involved in the labour dispute. Availability is likely to tighten quickly as Thursday approaches, especially in premium cabins and on popular transatlantic services, so flexibility with travel dates, times and even destinations can be an asset.
Passengers already in Germany on multi leg itineraries should allow extra time at airports in case of long queues at check in, customer service desks and security checkpoints. It is wise to carry essential items such as medication, important documents and a change of clothes in hand luggage, as irregular operations often increase the risk of misdirected or delayed checked baggage.
Compensation, Rights and Practical Considerations
European air passenger protection rules provide a framework for compensation and assistance in the event of cancellations and long delays, and these will apply to many travellers affected by the Lufthansa strike. Eligibility depends on factors including the length of delay, the distance of the flight and the specific circumstances of the disruption. In broad terms, passengers on cancelled flights departing from the European Union or operated by an EU carrier may be entitled to reimbursement of their ticket or rerouting to their final destination, as well as fixed compensation if notice was short and no extraordinary circumstances apply.
In addition to financial compensation, airlines must provide care for stranded passengers, which typically includes meals and refreshments in relation to waiting time, hotel accommodation for overnight delays and transport between the airport and place of lodging. Travellers should keep receipts for any expenses they incur and document all communications with the airline, as this can simplify claims later.
However, even when legal rights are clear, processing claims can take time, especially when a large number of passengers are affected at once. For immediate travel decisions, it is usually more effective to focus first on securing a workable rerouting or new travel date, then pursue compensation and refunds once the situation has stabilised. Travel insurance policies may offer additional cover, but terms vary widely, so reading the small print is essential.
What This Strike Signals for European Aviation
The Lufthansa pilots’ and cabin crew strike is more than a one day disruption for travellers. It is also a sign of deeper tensions in European aviation as airlines, workers and regulators grapple with how to share the costs and benefits of a volatile market. Many legacy carriers emerged from the pandemic with heavier debt loads and greater pressure from low cost competitors, leading to restructuring programmes that often lean on new subsidiaries, different contracts and more flexible labour rules.
For employees, especially those in skilled, safety critical roles such as pilots and flight attendants, the fear is that hard won conditions and long term security could be gradually eroded in the name of competitiveness. Pensions, social plans and job guarantees have become flashpoints because they reach beyond immediate pay packets and speak to how risk is distributed between company and staff over an entire career.
For travellers, the immediate concern is simply whether they can reach their destination on time. But over the longer term, recurring industrial conflicts can influence ticket prices, route networks and the overall reliability of air travel. The outcome of Lufthansa’s dispute with its pilots and cabin crew will be watched closely across the industry, both in Germany and beyond, as other airlines weigh their own strategies for balancing cost control with workforce stability.