Ryanair's German pilots to strike Friday before holiday

Ryanair faces its first-ever pilot strike the Friday before Christmas as a German union it has promised to recognise makes a show of force following a breakdown in initial negotiations. Vereinigung Cockpit said Thursday that pilots will walk out from 5 am to 9 am after the airline refused to meet with 2 of 5 representatives the labor group sent to talks. “Ryanair’s delegation did not even enter the room,” union president Ilja Schulz said. “We tried to see what could still be negotiated but it wasn’t much. Our lesson learnt is Ryanair has not changed a bit.” Ryanair said the strike is “unjustified” given that the sides have agreed to meet again Jan 5, adding that the pilot council which attended the talks had not been elected by its own staff and contained 1 person who is currently in litigation with the company. <br/>