Union pulls out of talks about British Airways’ new LCC

The British Airline Pilots’ Association (BALPA) has pulled out of talks with British Airways (BA, London Heathrow) concerning the establishment of a new low-cost carrier based out of London Gatwick after the carrier refused to contractually commit to providing the same benefits to the pilots of its new subsidiary as in the mainline.

“We have received an email from BA making it clear that the company is not prepared to include the protection clause we require. We can no longer recommend the proposed LGW short-haul agreement. As such, we have terminated the consultative ballot with immediate effect,” the union wrote in a circular, as quoted by Head for Points, a British aviation blog.

In a comment to the Daily Mail, the airline said it remained “committed to dialogue with all interested parties”.

The IAG International Airlines Group carrier touted plans to launch a new subsidiary based out of Gatwick in late August 2021. Had things gone according to plan, it hoped to launch the new unit in time for the summer 2022 season. The new LCC would allow the carrier to restart short-haul operations out of its secondary hub, which have remained suspended since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. British Airways continues to ply long-haul services out of Gatwick on leisure-heavy routes to the Caribbean without any European feeder traffic. It also flies daily between Gatwick and Glasgow Int’l, the ch-aviation schedules shows. Meanwhile, all of the carrier’s connecting hub traffic is currently routed via London Heathrow.