Facebook / KM Malta AirlinesTravellers to and from Malta can expect delays as from today as KM Malta pilots start obeying a raft of directives issued by their union.
The industrial action comes into effect on Monday morning and the Airline Pilots’ Union reserved the right to escalate the action if the impasse with KM Malta Airlines management remains unresolved.
The union gave notice of the industrial action on Friday, days after their members unanimously voted to strike during an Extraordinary General Meeting.
The action follows a breakdown in communication between the company and the union over issues mostly pertaining to its members’ safety and wellbeing. Sources said the union informed its members that the company had “outrightly rejected” its proposed measures regarding manpower, which aimed to achieve a fair balance for all its members.
The union was also at loggerheads with the company over the method that a pilot can lose his or her licence in the case of disciplinary action and a special insurance for pilots who cannot fly on medically grounds.
Moreover, the company had given the union a seniority list that was laden with mistakes.
“It is unfortunate that discussions between ALPA and the company have so far yielded minimal progress,” the union told its members as it issued a list of directives.
“Extraordinary circumstances call for extraordinary measures,” it added, as it explained that it was duty-bound to safeguard the safety and well-being of its members.
In a directive which is most expected to affect flight time, pilots have been instructed not to allow passengers to board the aircraft until the fuelling procedure has been completed.
The pilots’ union were instructed to attend the pre-flight briefing at the same time that they report for duty and not before. Those who are rostered as being on standby can only be contacted at the time that their standby time starts.
Pilots are to perform what is known as full-length departures whereby an aircraft takes off from the very beginning of a runway, utilising the entire available length of the runway before take-off. Similarly, on landing, pilots are to operate full arrival procedures. Both are subject to different orders by the Air Traffic Control but pilots have been instructed to request these departure and arrival procedures to the Air Traffic Control, informing the tower that this was “…due to industrial action”.
ALPA members were further instructed not to conduct single engine taxi procedures and to refuse to reattach physical documents if the photographs are blurry due to software bugs.
Furthermore, they have been told not to report delay codes via the Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System and to make public announcements in the Maltese language only. This shall not apply in case of announcements related to abnormal or emergency situations.
The union told its members it continued to be available to engage with the company in fruitful discussions.
Industrial actions ‘not expected’ to cause any flight cancellations
KM Malta Airlines said on Monday that the industrial actions begun by its pilots were not expected to cause any cancellations, even though delays were possible.
“The industrial actions planned by the pilot community may, in some cases, cause some flights delays but are not expected to cause any flight cancellations,” it said.
Passengers were being advised to check in “as normal” for their planned flights.
The airline – which succeeded the bankrupt Air Malta last year – also apologised “for any possible disruption which these actions may cause.”
