Eurowings was never really able to gain a foothold at Vienna-Schwechat Airport, apart from the Austria-Germany traffic. A large-scale expansion, which also resulted in some Austrian Airlines routes being handed over to the sister company, was not crowned with success.

The Eurowings brand was never really able to establish itself in Vienna outside of the German routes, because the Lufthansa Group's cheap brand was not really accepted by the market. In addition, there were price-offensive alternatives with Lauda, ​​Wizz Air and, in some cases, Level, which had a clearly negative effect on sales at Eurowings.

So a new strategy had to be found and this provided that, with the exception of the Germany routes, all Eurowings routes from Vienna would be abandoned. Some of these were taken over by Austrian Airlines. In the German traffic, Nuremberg and Hanover were returned to the AUA, because the experiment to offer them under the Eurowings brand did not bring the desired success.

Escape in AUA wet lease also failed

Before the pandemic, it was agreed between Eurowings Europe and Austrian Airlines that a total of five Airbus A320s would fly for AUA as part of a wet lease agreement. At that time, Austrian Airlines was expanding and expanded its capacity with the five planes. In return, the Eurowings routes from Vienna - apart from the Germany routes - were discontinued. But Corona completely reshuffled the cards.

Austrian Airlines had to register short-time working and, once again in the company's history, had to take state aid. The rented Eurowings planes became superfluous because the company's own fleet was also reduced. Thus the wet lease contract was terminated. The Eurowings Europe base in Vienna has been only “virtual” for a long time. There are aircraft and personnel stationed, but only occasional flights for Eurowings Germany.

Due to the short-time work, this has not really been a problem so far, because Eurowings Europe has had the Vienna workforce in this relief measure since the beginning of the corona pandemic. In the long term, however, the management around Robert Jahn no longer see any perspective. Co-managing director Dieter Watzak-Helmer left the company in mid-2021, so that the carrier currently only has one managing director.

Eurowings Europe is to grow in Prague and Stockholm-Arlanda

The Eurowings Europe's works council informed the workforce at the Vienna base in a letter available to Aviation.Direct that a significant reduction in the size of the home base at Vienna-Schwechat Airport is planned. The management no longer sees any perspective here. In the worst case, the Vienna base, which is only active “virtually” anyway, could be closed entirely. The result: The staff has a choice underground wages to Prague to change or go to Stockholm-Arlanda. In theory there could still be opportunities in Pristina and Palma de Mallorca.

So that there is at least a bit of work for the Vienna base, it has to help set up the new branch in Sweden. It is intended that Viennese crews fly there and then replaced by local staff. At least in theory it should be possible to move to Arlanda permanently.

And then a word comes up that already caused a sensation in Austria with competitor Lauda: collective agreement. According to the works council, the Eurowings Europe management should make it a condition that the existing CT is adapted so that two machines remain in Vienna. Nevertheless, that would mean that three Airbus A320s and their workforce will be reduced. Of course, “adapting” means lowering wages. The Laudamotion management pursued a similar strategy in the previous year, but it came about in spite of this effective publicity measures after Signing of the key issues paper zu no KV degree, because they lost interest and preferred to raise their Maltese successor, Lauda Europe. Nevertheless, at Eurowings Europe, too, people now want to “tweak” the CT.

Flight attendant wages at Austrian Airlines are lower than at Eurowings Europe

Incidentally, there is an almost unknown peculiarity, because it is sometimes completely wrongly claimed that Austrian Airlines would pay top wages in direct comparison with its competitors. The opposite is the case, because the AUA is the Lufthansa Group's cheapest production platform in the DA-CH region. No other group member has salaries as low as Austrian Airlines. This also includes Eurowings Europe, because flight attendants earn more here than their AUA colleagues. Exactly this circumstance could now be a thorn in the side of the Eurowings Europe management, because the higher earnings compared to the sister company are stipulated in the collective agreement.

The works council is shaken by the fact that Eurowings sees no market opportunities in Vienna, even though the competitors Wizz Air and Ryanair are expanding. This is of course not good news for the workforce at Eurowings Europe, but even before the corona pandemic, Eurowings impressively demonstrated that the Viennese market did not accept the product. Otherwise they would have stuck to this and not - apart from the Germany routes - withdrew the fire and partly handed it back to the sister company Austrian Airlines. However, one must also add that there have never been any large-scale advertising campaigns for Eurowings in the Vienna area.

Of course, there is also a plan B that Ryanair has already successfully implemented with Lauda. Build up a proper threat that many jobs could be lost and sooner or later those employees who are attached to their job will already play along and agree to cuts in their salaries. Ultimately, it should be clear at Eurowings Europe that Austrian Airlines is no longer a wet-lease customer and that there is not enough work for Eurowings to Germany with just a few flights. There are jobs in Prague at low conditions, even by local standards, in Stockholm-Arlanda, Pristina and Palma de Mallorca. But whether it is so easy for every employee who has also been promised a secure job at the Lufthansa subsidiary Eurowings Europe to move all over Europe in order to keep the job - then on local terms - is entirely clear other sheet.