A strike by pilots at Iberia has forced the cancellation of nearly 30 per cent of the Spanish national airline's scheduled flights today, a company spokeswoman said.
"So far...of 1,007 flights scheduled for today, 287 have been cancelled, which is equivalent to 28 per cent," the spokeswoman said.
Today's stoppage was the first in a series of 10 one-day strikes in the peak summer season called by Iberia's powerful pilots union which is pushing for pay rises.
The dispute has hampered the performance of the airline since it made its stock market debut in April when the state sold most of its 54 per cent stake.
Iberia shares opened today at euro 1.11, only a cent above a new low of euro touched yesterday.
Around 50 per cent of Iberia's shares now trade on the stock market, while another 40 per cent is held by a group of institutional partners, the biggest of whom are British Airways and savings bank Caja Madrid.