Spanish union calls five-day Ryanair pilot strike

MADRID (Reuters) - Spanish pilots union SEPLA said on Wednesday it would call a nationwide strike among Ryanair <RYA.I> pilots for five days in September, in protest at plans to close several bases in the country.

A SEPLA spokesman said around 900 pilots would be invited to walk out on Sept. 19, 20, 22, 27 and 29. Some of those dates coincide with planned strikes already announced by the Irish airline's cabin crew in Spain.

Last week, Ryanair decided to close its Spanish bases in Las Palmas, Tenerife South, Lanzarote and Girona from January, putting the jobs of more than 500 pilots and cabin crew at risk, according to the local USO union.

(Reporting by Emma Pinedo, writing by Isla Binnie; editing by Jesús Aguado)