An internal Ryanair memo has described Thursday's threatened strike by pilots as "blackmail", and says the airline will "face down" the industrial action.
The letter to staff, written by Ryanair's Chief People Officer Eddie Wilson, and seen by RTÉ News, said that only 27% of its 350 Irish-based pilots support the strike, and it "has no democratic mandate whatsoever".
Last week, Ryanair pilots balloted by the Irish Air Line Pilots' Association (IALPA) voted to back strike action in their dispute over terms and conditions, and a 24-hour strike is planned for this Thursday, 12 July.
Pilot unions said they will notify the airline of further stoppages in due course and remain available for engagement.
In his memo, Mr Wilson said that the IALPA's parent union Fórsa "have refused 20 separate invitations to meet us here at our Airside offices (which is where all other meetings with our people and their unions have taken place)".
The memo stated that if Fórsa does not meet with the airline tomorrow, Tuesday or Wednesday, then "it's likely some disruption will occur next Thursday".
It said unless such a meeting takes place, the airline will issue an update notice to passengers on Tuesday, advising them of plans to minimise the disruption caused by the strike.
Like other airlines, Ryanair has already been hit by air traffic control strikes in Europe that left more than 210,000 passengers facing flight cancellations last month.
It said more than 1,100 flights were cancelled for the second month running due to air traffic control strikes over four weekends in June, as well as staff shortages in the UK, Germany and France.
Responding to the internal Ryanair memo, a spokesperson for Fórsa said: "The language is unhelpful, and in the context of an industrial dispute, is likely to push the parties further apart."
A spokesperson for Ryanair said no one would be available today for comment.
A spokesperson for IALPA also said they would not be commenting on the story.
