Sawt Falasteen - Strike action grounds thousands of flights in Germany

Some 3,400 flights were affected by the industrial action, impacting around 500,000 passengers, the German airport association ADV said.

At Frankfurt, the country's busiest airport, operator Fraport said no passengers would be able to board and that disruptions would "almost certainly" affect transit travel, according to German daily Bild.

Airports in Bremen, Cologne, Dortmund, Duesseldorf, Hamburg, Hanover, Leipzig, Munich and Stuttgart were also affected.

The Verdi union said Friday it was calling on public sector workers and some 23,000 employees of ground handling service providers to walk out to send a message to management.

"We regret the inconvenience that this strike will cause for passengers," said the union's deputy chair Christine Behle.

"But without the pressure of industrial action, there will be no movement in the negotiations."

The union's demands include a pay rise of eight percent or at least 350 euros ($380) more per month, and higher bonuses for particularly stressful activities.

The union said that "we are forced to go on this warning strike because the employers have not yet made an offer in the ongoing collective bargaining negotiations for public sector employees and have shown no willingness to meet our legitimate demands."

R.Halabi--SF-PST