SUMMER flights from Southampton Airport could face disruption as firefighters plot a potentially crippling strike.

Crews at the city’s airport are to be balloted for industrial action over pension changes.

Members of the Unite union will vote in the coming weeks on whether to launch a campaign of action over "adverse" pension changes proposed by the airports’ owner, AGS.

Unite said the airports’ owners, AGS were proposing “significant and detrimental’’ changes to pension schemes.

The firefighters, members of Unite, the country’s largest union, are likely to be joined by firefighters from Prospect in balloting for industrial action.

Without the firefighters being on duty, the airport, which deals with nearly 1.8 million passengers a year, would have to close down.

It follows a similar move by workers at Glasgow and Aberdeen airports.

Unite’s ballot for strike action and industrial action short of a strike, will close on Wednesday 13 July 13. The ballot by the Southampton workers follows the decision last week that about 480 Unite members at Glasgow and Aberdeen airports were also balloting for strike action, after 98 per cent of workers rejected proposed changes to the pensions’ schemes.

AGS Airports is a partnership between Ferrovial and Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (MIRA), established in 2014 to acquire Aberdeen, Glasgow and Southampton airports.

Unite said that the proposals to make significant – and detrimental – changes to the pensions’ schemes will adversely impact on retirement incomes, given that pensions are, in effect, deferred wages.

Unite tabled a counter proposal to AGS management that maintained a defined benefit scheme, but reduced the employer’s contribution from 44 per cent to 20-21 per cent.

The Unite proposal would have meant a yearly saving of over £3.5 million. The proposal was rejected by AGS which then put a proposal to cut the cost rate to 17 per cent which equates to a further saving of £640,000.

Unite regional officer Phil Silkstone said: “Unite has been in negotiations with AGS over a number of months to come to agreement to significantly reduce the defined benefit (DB) pension scheme costs, then at the point when an agreement was achievable AGS gave 60 days notice to close the DB scheme.

“Following a meeting requested by Unite to put forward a proposal to keep the DB scheme, the company’s response left our Southampton members with no other option but to ballot our members for industrial action.

“Unite’s door is fully open to meet with the company to resolve this issue and avoid disruption to the travelling public.”

A spokeswoman for Southampton Airport said: “Discussions have been ongoing between the company and union representatives regarding changes to the existing final salary pension scheme since October 2015.

“We remain committed to holding further discussions with union representatives in order to reach a solution that is acceptable to all parties. While Unite the Union have a number of members in Southampton who are impacted by the proposed changes they have disappointingly taken the steps of only allowing the staff in the Fire Service to participate in the ballot.”