JAL asks pilot union to accept 30 pct pay cut - Nikkei

July 27 (Reuters) - Debt-ridden Japan Airlines Corp (JALFQ.PK) has proposed pay reductions to its unions as part of its rehabilitation, the Nikkei business daily reported.

The plan includes a 30 percent cut in the average salary of pilots from fiscal 2009 levels, bringing their annual pay to about 12 million yen ($137,200), the paper said.

The proposed salary is about 7.8 million yen less than what pilots at rival carrier All Nippon Airways (9202.T) received last fiscal year, the paper said.

However, the offer, which excludes foreign contract pilots, is higher than the 8.03 million yen salary for pilots at newcomer carrier Skymark Airlines (9204.T), the Nikkei said.

The airline aims to show its main lenders that it is willing to slash pay in addition to shedding 16,000 jobs, or a third of its groupwide workforce, the paper said.

JAL has also called for a 25 percent cut in pay to about 4.2 million yen for flight attendants, and a 20 percent cut in the ground crew's pay to roughly 5 million yen, the paper said.

The airline's unions have indicated that they have no choice but to accept the pay proposals if they are necessary for the firm to get back on its feet, Nikkei said. ($1=87.44 Yen) (Reporting by Shailesh Kuber in Bangalore; Editing by Vyas Mohan)