Polish national airline LOT laid off 67 employees over work absences Monday against a backdrop of ongoing strikes protesting labour conditions, the state-run company’s CE Rafal Milczarski said. “It was a sad but necessary decision,” said Milczarski Monday, according to the local state news agency PAP. 3,000 people currently work at LOT. The airline’s labour unions condemned the decision. “It’s another form of bullying,” said Karol Sadowski, the lawyer representing the pilot and cabin crew unions currently taking part in the strike, adding that the decision to lay off workers was in his opinion illegal. The company failed to provide adequate concessions to the striking workers, Sadowski said. A spokesman for LOT said the layoffs were carried out legally. LOT’s unions are taking collective action over working conditions in Poland, arguing against the imposition of self-employment contracts.<br/>
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United is adding Hilton Head, South Carolina, to its route map as part of a new round of domestic expansion at the carrier. United will begin flying to Hilton Head, adding flights to the South Carolina resort destination from its hubs at Chicago O’Hare, Newark Liberty and Washington Dulles. United’s United Express affiliates will operate two daily round-trip flights from Washington starting March 31. Service from Chicago will operate only on Saturdays and Sundays while Newark service will be Saturday-only service. Flights will be seasonal on all routes, scheduled to run through Sept. 8. Newark and Chicago flights begin April 6. United will be just the second airline to fly from the Hilton Head airport. American already offers American Eagle regional service to its second-busiest hub in Charlotte. Beyond Hilton Head, United announced several other new routes and detailed new service and schedule adjustments at its two big East Coast hubs: Newark Liberty and Washington Dulles. <br/>
Aegean Airlines picked US engine maker Pratt & Whitney to power up to 62 Airbus A320neo aircraft, the carrier said Monday. Aegean Airlines reached an agreement with Airbus in March for the order of 42 aircraft worth $5b to renew its fleet of single-aisle planes and add capacity for future expansion. The order was the largest by a Greek carrier and one of the biggest investments by a private Greek company in recent years. Aegean Airlines said Pratt & Whitney engines would be used for 30 firm, 12 option, and up to 20 leased aircraft. “We selected the Pratt & Whitney GTF engine to provide our passengers with the newest and most advanced technology available for our new Airbus aircraft,” said Eftichios Vassilakis, Aegean Airlines’ Chairman. Pratt & Whitney, which already powers many of the airline’s aircraft, will also provide engine maintenance through a long-term service agreement, Aegean said.<br/>