ATC Strike Gives Greek Carrier 24 Hours Off

If you were flying on Olympic Airlines Thursday, you didn't.

The former Greek flag carrier (as Olympic Airways) -- which has already been beaten up by bad press -- got another punch from an unlikely source: public sector employee unions. This follows on the heels of bankruptcy rumors, and last year's nasty Supreme Court loss in which forerunner Olympic Airways was held liable for a passenger's wrongful death in 1997.

Greek ATC workers are staging a one-day strike, which has completely shut down air traffic in Olympic's Hellenic homeland, along with other public employees who have shut down hospitals and other functions for 24 hours.

In all, over 200,000 Greek public servants are idled by the strike. The teachers' unions have extended their strike to 48 hours, but providers of essential services are just taking one day. The purpose of the strike is to protest the economic and social policies of the conservative government in Greece.

The Athens airport was closed Thursday, but it was scheduled to reopen at midnight when the ATC workers and other government-employed airport staff returned to duty. With so many of Olympic's flights beginning or terminating at Athens, the airport closure hits the airline, too.

Of course, passengers on the cancelled flights probably won't know about Greek labor strife or party politics. They're more likely to blame the company, and tee off on Olympic's gate agents.

The company could certainly do a better job of communication. At press time, Olympic's website had no information about the strike or the shutdown.

FMI: www.olympicairlines.com