Pilots at Virgin Atlantic Airways are to be balloted for strike action over pay and conditions.
The British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA) said a secret ballot would be sent to its members on 24 May. The result of the ballot will be announced four weeks later.
BALPA represents more than 85% of Virgin Atlantic's 750 pilots.
If the strike is supported, the union will have to give Virgin Atlantic a week's notice of any planned industrial action.
BALPA general secretary Jim McAuslan argued that pilots at Virgin Atlantic have not had a pay rise since 2008, and the proposed 4% increase this year and 3% in the following two years means that "with inflation running at 5% and likely to remain high, pilots would, if they accepted these increases, be in effect voting themselves years of wage cuts".
Talks between BALPA and Virgin Atlantic management began in 2010 and have involved conciliation service ACAS.
Virgin Atlantic said it has "made a fair, affordable and sustainable offer that is in line with the rest of the industry" and remains "open to dialogue".
It added: "Virgin Atlantic would like to reassure passengers that all of its flight schedule continues to operate as normal."
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
