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British Airways cabin crew are continuing with a strike over cost-cutting, leading to fresh clashes between the airline and union leaders about the impact of the industrial action.
BA said it was reinstating eight cancelled long haul flights from Heathrow and 18 short haul services from Heathrow and Gatwick this weekend after maintaining that more staff than expected had turned up for work.
The union disputed the claims and insisted that 80% of its 12,000 members had walked out at the start of a three day stoppage, and were expected to remain on strike.
BA countered that 1,157 cabin crew ignored the strike call and reported for duty - equivalent to 97% of Gatwick and 52.5% of Heathrow staff.
Unite said that scores of BA planes were grounded, many left without few passengers on board and described the carrier's contingency plans as a failure.
The union predicted that disruption would worsen, but BA said Unite's claims were "rubbish".
Striking cabin crew plan to gather at a football ground close to Heathrow before taking their turn on picket lines which have been mounted again at a number of entrances to the airport.
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The political heat on Gordon Brown is expected to intensify after the Conservatives released a new advert depicting the Prime Minister as a pilot, wearing a Unite cap, and bearing the message: "Gordon's Doing Sweet BA".
BA said it had reinstated some long-haul flights because more staff had worked, including services to Miami, Los Angeles, Tel Aviv, JFK in New York and Cape Town.
