E tū airport fire and rescue workers withdraw strike notice; flights to operate as normal

Auckland Airport’s AES staffing dispute took an unexpected turn this week as E tū withdrew its strike notice for the Airport Emergency Services team, effectively suspending planned industrial action that had been set for Tuesday 24 November and Friday 27 November. The move followed discussions between Auckland Airport and E tū, with Chief Operations Officer Chloe Surridge confirming progress in negotiations and the resolution appearing to maintain normal airport operations without disruptions from AES-related action, according to E tū’s release. No further terms of any agreement or ongoing negotiation specifics were disclosed in the material, but the withdrawal signals a temporary resolution to the staffing and conditions dispute concerning the AES team.

Across the Canary Islands, disruption occurred earlier in the month as part of a broader strike wave and weather-driven interruptions. Canarian Weekly reported six morning flight cancellations on 11 November at Tenerife South and Gran Canaria airports—three at each location—within the archipelago’s general strike context. The piece notes that these cancellations affected various airlines and the day’s scheduled operations, but does not provide the specific airlines, flight numbers, destinations, or passenger impact details. The reporting emphasizes that some services were rescheduled and that affected passengers were accommodated on earlier departures where possible, citing Aena’s data for the six cancellations.

Weather systems contributed to regional disruptions that week, with several sources tying Canary Islands cancellations to Storm Charles as it moved toward southern France. The Connexion described cancellations on routes including Nice to Lisbon and Nice to Madrid as the weather system approached. Riviera Radio corroborated weather-related disruptions at Nice Côte d’Azur Airport on 11 November, noting heavy rain and gusty winds spreading from the Iberian Peninsula region; however, neither outlet provided a complete cancellations tally. These weather-driven notes place the Canary Islands disruptions within a broader meteorological context affecting neighboring airspace and routes during the period.

Tenerife Weekly, citing Aena, added granular Canary Islands context by confirming seven diversions away from La Palma caused by Storm Bruna, with some diversions affecting services from Tenerife South and Gran Canaria. The report cited a Munich-originating flight to Tenerife South and a Hamburg-originating service to Gran Canaria as examples of diversions, reiterating that details such as flight numbers, aircraft types, or delays beyond the diversions were not provided. This piece aligns with the broader pattern of weather-driven disruptions affecting Canary Islands air traffic during the period.

Simple Flying summarized the Heathrow tail-strike incident involving a DHL-branded Airbus A300-600F operated by European Air Transport Leipzig. The aircraft reportedly struck the tail on approach to London Heathrow during the first landing attempt, then performed a go-around, and on the second landing attempt was written off. The Australian/European-coverage piece references an AAIB bulletin for the detailed circumstances but notes that no information on injuries or the exact flight number or aircraft type beyond the DHL-labeled freighter was included in the supplied material. RNZ echoed the tail-strike framing, but the Simple Flying piece provided the strongest linkage to the AAIB bulletin and the write-off outcome.

AAIB-based reporting, as presented by Simple Flying, indicates that investigators were dispatched to the scene and that the DHL A300-600F, operated by European Air Transport Leipzig, endured a tail strike on the initial landing attempt at Heathrow, followed by a second landing that led to the aircraft being written off. The material does not specify injuries or the exact flight number, and it stresses only the written-off status after the second landing. The article also reiterates that the tail-strike involved a DHL-labeled freighter and that the incident was covered in an AAIB bulletin.

Additional context from 재경일보 covers labor and management activity unrelated to the Heathrow incident, noting a tentative wage agreement at Airport Railroad, with a 4.9% pay increase and resources allocated to add safety personnel, resulting in the withdrawal of a planned one-day warning strike. Seoul Economic Daily adds that main bargaining sessions occurred on 12 November with discussions extending late into the day. If disruptions occurred, projections suggested a potential reduction in overall train operation rates during a strike scenario. This material is tangential to the aviation news cycle, focusing on rail rather than flight operations.

RNZ’s broader roundup includes the Heathrow tail-strike event alongside other aviation incidents in its stream, highlighting that the tail strike occurred on approach to London Heathrow and that investigators were involved. Simple Flying’s AAIB-based reporting remains the primary source for details on the Heathrow incident, including the write-off status of the DHL A300-600F, while other outlets provide corroborative context or peripheral references to the event without adding new outcome details.