Frankfurt (dpa) - A two-day strike by Lufthansa cabin crew entered its second day on Friday after crippling the German airline on its first day.

On Thursday, some 700 flights from the main group's timetable of 1,100 were cancelled, with 600 more axed on Friday; some 180,000 passengers are expected to be hit in total over the two days.

Lufthansa chief executive Carsten Spohr has called for new talks with the Ufo trade union to settle their dispute over pay and conditions.

Ufo spokesman Nicoley Baublies said on Thursday it was ready to enter into arbitration with Lufthansa this weekend but it would not cancel the two-day strike.

The union said it would not extend the strike to other airlines in the Lufthansa group such as Swiss, Austrian, Brussels Airlines or Eurowings, but reserves the right to launch further action.

Lufthansa, which held discussions with two other unions - Verdi and Cabin Union - on Wednesday but not Ufo, lost a bid to halt the strike at a Frankfurt labour court and also failed in its appeal against that decision.

The strike is aimed at securing demands for higher expenses and allowances for approximately 21,000 Lufthansa flight attendants, as well as better access to regular employment for seasonal workers.

Most take-offs from Germany with LH flight numbers have been cancelled for Friday, including the majority of intercontinental connections from its two hubs in Frankfurt and Munich.

The airline said some disruption could follow on Saturday because aircraft and crews are not in the right places.

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