Local News in Brief : Strike Cuts Alaska Airlines’ Flights Out of Burbank 50%

Alaska Airlines’ flights out of Burbank Airport were reduced by 50% Monday because of a strike by mechanics and baggage handlers at the airline’s destinations north of Seattle.

Officials at the company’s Burbank office, however, said no local employees are honoring the strike because they work under a different contract.

“Right now we have 100% of our employee group. None of them walked out,” said Michael Feskens, Burbank customer service manager for the airline. “We generally have six flights a day out of here and we’re now down to three, but I’m sure that’s a very temporary reduction.”

Airline spokesman Marc DeLaunay said mechanical and baggage-handling services for Alaska Airlines locations south of Seattle are not provided by the airline itself, but by contracted companies.

He said supervisory personnel at the company’s northern destinations are filling in for the striking workers and that the airline hopes to increase the number of flights over the next few days.

The workers walked out at 7 a.m. Monday after an all-night bargaining session failed to produce an agreement, DeLaunay said. The Seattle-based airline serves most cities in Alaska, and also operates regular flights to and from Spokane, Wash.; Boise, Ida.; Portland, Ore.; and San Francisco, San Jose, Oakland, Burbank, Long Beach and Palm Springs.

Feskens said all displaced Burbank passengers found seats on other flights within a few hours of their scheduled flight times.