Air France, KLM and Lufthansa oppose NAI

In an open letter, Air France, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and Lufthansa, as well as several European pilots’ and cabin crew unions, have written to the European Commission (EC) jointly opposing plans by Norwegian Air International (NAI), a subsidiary of low-cost carrier Norwegian Air Shuttle, to start transatlantic operations. The airlines claim NAI’s intention to use Thai personnel based in Ireland is an illegal attempt to circumvent expensive Norwegian employment legislation – a charge denied by NAI. The letter states: “Competition in aviation is intense and it keeps us sharp. However, through business models like this we risk entering a