TUIfly flights are progressively returning to normal after massive disruptions that started last week following confirmation of plans to merge the German leisure airline with Air Berlin’s point-to-point operations.
Pilots and cabin crew of TUIfly began suddenly calling in sick last week after the announcement of the proposed tie-up. Around 450 staff reported in sick over the weekend and some 2,000 over the total duration of the protest, according Bild am Sonntag. There were so many short-notice sickness absences on October 7 that the operator had to cancel all its flights, stranding thousands of passengers.
The airline operates on average approximately 100 daily flights between Germany, Austria and Switzerland and a series of holiday destinations in southern Europe and Turkey. Management tried to miinimize the inconvenience to passengers by hiring short-term capacity from other operators, including from TUIfly’s UK sister airline Thomson Fly and other TUI Group airlines.
TUI Group is the world’s largest travel and tourism company headquartered in Hannover, Germany. It has a portfolio of more than 300 hotels, 14 cruise liners, six European airlines with around 140 aircraft and a wide-reaching distribution network, covering more than 1,800 travel agencies and online portals.
The impromptu industrial action yielded some results. TUI management reportedly gave union representatives a series of assurances about the airline’s future, including that it would retain a base in Hannover for at least three years, keep existing pay and contract conditions, and continue providing capacity for the TUI Group. Moreover, TUI decided to postpone a board vote on the matter from October 26 to mid-November.
Under plans announced on October 5, a new European leisure aviation company will be created through the combination of Germany’s TUIfly and parts of perennial loss-making Air Berlin, Germany’s second largest airline after Lufthansa.
“Etihad Aviation Group and TUI AG today confirmed they are in discussions to create a strong European leisure airline group, focused on point-to-point flying to connect key tourist markets,” the companies said in a joint statement. Air Berlin issued a separate statement, saying it had resolved to join discussions between TUI Group and Etihad Aviation Group with regard to a transfer of Air Berlin group’s "touristic business" to a new airline group.
Abu Dhabi-based and owned Etihad is Air Berlin’s largest single shareholder, with a near 30% stake.
The three airlines gave little information about the planned new airline, and said only that it could result in the combination of the current tourism business of Air Berlin group with 35 aircraft and the German TUIfly.
This new airline group would serve a broad network of destinations from Germany, Austria and Switzerland, the parties said, adding that it will be supported by the expertise of Etihad Aviation Group and utilize TUI’s distribution capacity.
Air Berlin’s input in the proposed new venture includes 14 Boeing 737-788/ 800s currently operated by TUIfly for Air Berlin under a wet-lease agreement. According to a number of media reports, the new airline would comprise about 60 aircraft and Air Berlin would also bring its Austrian leisure airline subsidiary, Vienna-based NIKI in the new airline. NIKI operates 20 Airbus A320 family aircraft, according to the carrier’s website.
The prospective transaction will be subject to successful negotiations and to all necessary corporate and regulatory approvals.
The set-up of a new leisure airline is only part of a more comprehensive restructuring of Air Berlin aimed at cutting losses. The shake-up will also see Air Berlin place up to 40 short-haul aircraft with archrival Lufthansa under a five-year wet-lese contract.
Lufthansa in turn would allocate up to 35 of these narrowbodies to its low-cost carrier Eurowings and up to five of them to its Austrian Airlines subsidiary. The much reduced Air Berlin operation would focus on short and long-haul network flying from two main hubs, at Berlin and Dusseldorf airport.
