Air France faces new strikes over domestic network cuts at Hop

Air France unions have called for strikes at its domestic carrier Hop as pilots seek improved pay and conditions and ground staff press for job guarantees, union officials said. The strike calls pose a new challenge to plans by Air France-KLM CE Ben Smith to cut back the airline's loss-making domestic network and restore its profitability. After a Tuesday works council meeting, French ground-staff unions said they were maintaining a call for strikes over Feb 21-22 and stoppages at Paris Orly and provincial airports, with the SNPL pilots' union calling a first strike by Hop pilots for Feb 24. The CFDT, CFE-CGC, CGT, FO and UNSA unions also expressed concern about widespread job outsourcing and called for new hires and transfers to fill gaps left by voluntary redundancies. <br/>