Lufthansa staffers have reportedly been at odds with the carrier for months over their union's legal status and labuor conditions, demanding better pay. According to NPR, the German company failed to reach a last-minute agreement with flight attendants. A court in Frankfurt - the city where the carrier's headquarters are located - has ruled that the strike is legal.
As a result, suspended air traffic has affected hundreds of thousands of passengers globally.
The two-day strike has reportedly affected some 180,000 passengers. Lufthansa released a statement ahead of the planned walkout, slamming the actions of flight attendants.
"The Independent Flight Attendant Organisation (UFO) has called on its cabin crew to go on strike for two days on 7 and 8 November [...] Lufthansa condemns the strike call in the strongest possible terms. Affected passengers were transferred to other flights free of charge", Lufthansa said in a statement late on Wednesday.
The company also warned that a prolonged strike would cause mass flight cancellations on Friday as well, with some 600 planes to remain grounded, and urging affected passengers to "use of the self-service facilities for rebooking".