The company says that the cuts are an adjustment to its technical organization after the decrease in the size of its fleet in recent years and after it stopped offering maintenance services to external customers last year.
Last year Finnair outsourced its engine and component services to SR Technics. Heavy maintenance of Airbus wide body aircraft has always been in the hands of the company’s maintenance partners in Asia.
Walkout
Following Finnair's announcement, nearly 1000 personnel walked off the job in protest on Thursday morning.
The trade union Pro announced that maintenance work needed for passenger traffic had been suspended. The walkout is to continue until 3 PM on Friday.
Finnair's head of passenger services issued a statement saying that the company will do all it can to continue normal operations and avoid any impact on customers' travel plans.
Flights to Incheon and Beijing were cancelled on Thursday, along with the return legs scheduled for Friday. Up to date information can be found on the company's website.
