Regional travellers and workers face having their flight plans disrupted by a three-day strike by pilots at a Qantas subsidiary.

February 26, 2024

Regional airline passengers and fly-in, fly-out workers face more flight disruptions as pilots employed by a Qantas subsidiary announce another work stoppage.

More than 200 Network Aviation and QantasLink pilots in Western Australia say they will walk off the job for three days on Wednesday over a long-running pay dispute.

It’s the fourth time Network Aviation pilots have taken industrial action in recent months, amid accusations Qantas Group is refusing to negotiate and has taken previously agreed terms off the bargaining table.

The pilots last week suspended a planned four-day strike after the WA government asked them to stay at work because of a threat posed by a tropical storm and the potential need for evacuation flights from the north of the state.

It didn’t happen and the pilots have resumed their fight.

Qantas has denied the union’s allegations and says it did not walk away from talks and had been negotiating with the pilots’ union for 18 months.

Previous industrial action has forced Network Aviation to cancel and reschedule dozens of flights.

Qantas Group said it was working on contingency plans to minimise disruptions and more than 80 per cent of passengers were expected to depart as scheduled.

“Customers whose flights are impacted will be contacted directly and offered fee-free date changes or refunds in the coming days,” a spokeswoman said.

A Fair Work Commission hearing has been scheduled for March 14-15 to determine whether the parties have reached a stage where an outcome cannot be negotiated.

Network Aviation, which is owned by Qantas, is WA’s premier charter company for the mining industry and operates hundreds of flights a week.