ALGIERS, May 16 (Xinhua) -- Thousands of passengers have been trapped Tuesday at the international airport of Algiers due to an unexpected strike by maintenance staff that led to the cancellation of several flights.
The maintenance staff members work for the Algerian state run Air Algerie company, as 39 domestic flights and 29 international flights of the national airline departing from all the Algerian airports have been suspended because of the strike.
The strike ended at around 2.30 pm GMT, after a meeting between representatives of the maintenance staff trade union, and the head office of the airline company, TSA news agency reported. The strikers claimed wage hikes, local media reported.
TSA quoted spokeswoman of Air Algerie, Mounia Bertouche, as saying that "the strike ended, as flights have resumed, and we will try to catch up with the caused delays."
Air Algerie witnessed several strike movements in recent years. In July of 2011, aeronautic personel of this state-run company grounded flights, blocking thousand passengers in foreign airports, including in Orley and Marseille, two French cities hosting the largest number of Algerian nationals worldwide.
