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Christmas chaos looms as airline strike threatens to ground flights to festive destinations

Cabin crew working for Scandinavian Airlines Services (SAS) at Heathrow are threatening a series of strikes

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Reindeers with sleds in winter forest, Lapland, Finland.
Reindeers with sleds in winter forest, Lapland, Finland. Picture: Alamy

By Alice Padgett

Christmas travel plans could be thrown into turmoil as Scandinavian Airlines workers threaten strike action over the festive period - raising fears that thousands may miss out on Lapland holidays.

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Cabin crew working for Scandinavian Airlines Services (SAS) at Heathrow are threatening a series of strikes in a dispute over pay.

Members of Unite are threatening to walk out on December 22, 23, 24 and 26.

SAS, based in Solna, Sweden, serves Kittilä and Rovaniemi airports near Finnish Lapland - popular with Brits on festive getaways hoping to see Santa.

The airline also flies to hubs in Copenhagen, Stockholm, and Oslo, especially during the winter season for the northern lights and Christmas markets.

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Tourists photographing each other, in Santa Claus Village, Rovaniemi, Lapland.
Tourists photographing each other, in Santa Claus Village, Rovaniemi, Lapland. Picture: Alamy

Unite general-secretary Sharon Graham said: “Scandinavian Airlines publicly praise their cabin crew yet in private it is cynically trying to short-change them.

“This is totally unacceptable when the airline depends on their expertise and passengers rely on them for safety.”

Cabin crew working for Scandinavian Airlines Services (SAS) at Heathrow are planning a series of strikes in a dispute over pay.
Cabin crew working for Scandinavian Airlines Services (SAS) at Heathrow are planning a series of strikes. Picture: Alamy

A company spokesperson said: “We are currently engaged in negotiations with the relevant parties.

“As the talks are ongoing, we are unable to comment further at this point in time.”