The chairman of British Airways, Robert Ayling, has entered the fray over the strike action of BA's French subsidiaries TAT European Airlines and Air Liberté, now entering its second week without resolution.
Speaking during a visit to Paris on 17 April, Ayling said that the two debt-plagued airlines, which have so far absorbed around £500 million ($800 million) of BA investment, "-must be profitable, like any other industry". He adds that he is "very confident" in the leadership of former TAT president Marc Rochet (who now directs both subsidiaries). The strike is over Rochet's demand that the salaries of TAT pilots should be cut to the level of those paid to their Air Liberté opposite numbers, and about working conditions.
TAT is now operating under a lease-management scheme, pending the eventual merger of the two companies under the Air Liberté name. "TAT's costs must be reduced, since it is clearly not competitive," says Ayling. He adds that, while the return on BA's financial input has yet to be seen, "I am sure that the future will show that it represents a very good investment."
Rochet is taking a firm stance with the strikers, saying that he will not support "...negotiation on the basis of accepting the terms of the unions without conditions".
Source: Flight International
