Pilots union Vereiniging Cockpit (VC) confirmed the strike had been averted after it reached a "partial solution" to a long-running pay dispute with Lufthansa on Tuesday (6 September).

"A comprehensive package of monetary and structural issues was essentially agreed and is awaiting elaboration in the coming days," said the union in a translated statement.

Despite the eleventh hour talks, there is, however, likely to be significant disruption to Lufthansa’s flight operations on Wednesday and Thursday after the airline confirmed it had to make a decision on strike-related cancellations by midday on Tuesday.

"This is necessary for aircraft and crew scheduling, as well as to provide at least minimal advance notice to affected passengers," said Lufthansa, which further warned of "massive effects" on its operations had the strike gone ahead.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, Lufthansa said the union had issued notice of a late amendment to one of its 16 demands, requiring Lufthansa to make a fresh pay offer to break the deadlock.

The German carrier is yet to comment on the update from the union on Wednesday.

Marcel Grols, VC chair of collective bargaining policy, said he was pleased a result could be achieved at the negotiating table rather than having to resort to striking, adding the agreement was an "important first step" towards sustainable cooperation between the two parties.