Talks to end the British Airways trade union dispute that stranded thousands of travellers two weeks ago have adjourned with the prospect of an imminent settlement.
BA, Europe's biggest airline, and the unions said they hoped to resolve the dispute today, 12 days after a wildcat strike badly affected the carrier.
Negotiations restarted yesterday after three trade unions holding talks among themselves sent an impromptu invitation to the company to come back to the table.
BA shares closed down 0.89 per cent at 167-1/2 pence, slightly lower than London's FTSE 100 Index which was down 0.28 per cent.
BA lost tens of millions of pounds as well as travellers' confidence when a wildcat strike earlier this month at Heathrow Airport, its main London hub, forced it to scrap more than 500 flights.
The airline is scheduled to report quarterly earnings tomorrow and is expected to provide an estimate of losses from the strike this week which some analysts have put at £50 million.
One of the airline's most costly labour disputes in a decade centres on BA's plans to introduce a new "swipe card" system for employees to clock on and off. BA's check-in staff fear it will lead to changes in shifts, pay and conditions. The airline denies this.