Qantas flight misery ahead as pilots vow to walk off the job for two days over pay row in fresh blow for airline

Regional airline passengers and fly-in, fly-out workers face more disruption as pilots working for a Qantas subsidiary vote for more industrial action.

The Australian Federation of Air Pilots said on Friday its members who work for Network Aviation and QantasLink in Western Australia would walk off their jobs on Wednesday and Thursday due to stalled pay negotiations.

Qantas Group said it was disappointed by the pilots’ decision to strike for the second time in less than a week, which would once again disrupt passengers’ travel plans.

“We are reviewing timetables and planning contingencies to ensure our customers can get where they need to go,” a spokeswoman said.

The airline said affected customers will be contacted and can make changes to their flights for free or request a refund.

Qantas Group was forced to rebook travelers on Jetstar, Qantas and charter flights on Thursday after Network Aviation canceled 35 flights due to a 24-hour pilot strike.

About 95 percent of regular customers and about 70 percent of charter flights were able to board the plane.

The pilots’ federation previously said Network Aviation had “walked away from the negotiating table” and its members had no choice but to strike.

A Network Aviation pilot, who preferred to remain anonymous, said the airline’s pilots were angry with the company for the way they handled the negotiations.

“The underlying thing for them is the cost factor,” the pilot told AAP.

‘They think we earn less than other pilots who fly for Qantas.

‘I work for a company that calls itself the best in the market, doesn’t value us and I feel cheated.’

The pilots’ union has been trying for 18 months to negotiate an enterprise agreement for the pilots with the Qantas Group to replace their previous pay agreement, which expired in 2020.

Network Aviation said its pilots had previously been offered and rejected pay increases of more than 25 percent, plus annual increases of three percent, new entitlements and greater roster protections.

The union denied the claim.

The airline submitted a persistent plea to the Fair Work Commission for negotiations on Monday to help broker a new enterprise agreement with its pilots to break the impasse.

Affected customers will be contacted and they can make changes to their flights for free or request a refund

A meeting between the parties is planned for Friday.

Network Aviation pilots were forced to walk off the job for 24 hours in early October due to pay negotiations, canceling more than 40 flights to and from regional cities and mining sites.

The airline, which is wholly owned by Qantas, is WA’s premier charter operator for the mining sector, operating hundreds of flights per week.

The company also employs local pilots for the airline’s QantasLink regional arm.

More than 90 percent of the more than 250 pilots are members of the pilot federation.