Alitalia plans a major restructuring

Alitalia said it expects about 18,000 passengers to face disruption to their journeys as a result of the walk-out.

Alitalia's management wants to shed 2,700 jobs to stem the state-run airline's financial losses, and prepare it for a partial privatisation.

The strike is the third major transport stoppage to hit Italy this year.

Job fears

Check-in desks at Rome's Fiumicino airport were deserted on Monday morning as the strike started to bite, Reuters news agency reported.

Alitalia's unions have called an 8-hour stoppage between 0900 and 1700 GMT on Monday. Their plans include a lunchtime protest outside the Finance Ministry in Rome.

Alitalia's management revealed job cut plans in October, setting out a timetable to complete the cut backs by 2006.

"We want the plan withdrawn and discussions to start again from scratch," said Stefano Pietrini, a spokesman for Fit-CISL trade union.

The layoffs are part of a management blue print to return the airline to profit in 2005, in the hope that it may then be able to form a three-way tie-up with Air France and Dutch airline KLM.

The Italian government removed one hurdle to the potential alliance in November 2003 when it passed a decree permitting the privatisation of Alitalia, which is currently 62.3% state-owned.

But the Italian airline's finances remain a stumbling block. The carrier has forecast an operating loss of more than 400m euros ($495m; �275m) this year.

Air France and KLM announced they were joining forces in September 2003.

Strike wave

Italian air traffic controllers held a one-day strike on 8 January to protest over pay and conditions which led to 334 Alitalia flights being cancelled, and long waits for about 20,000 stranded passengers.

That strike also disrupted flights by other European airlines, including Lufthansa, KLM, Easyjet and Ryanair.

A stoppage over pay also caused chaos on Italian bus, train and metro services on 9 January.