Fifteen football fans are being threatened by AIRLINE workers as they travel to Qatar to take part in the World Cup.
Heathrow’s ground-handling and transport staff are currently voting to strike for better pay.
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The World Cup will kick off on November 20, so the walk-out will begin just before that.
Qatari Airlines, with 10 extra flights per week, will be severely affected.
Virgin, Cathay-Pacific Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Emirates and Cathay-Pacific would also be affected.
The Unite union is organizing the strike and includes contractors from Menzies, Dnata and other areas.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Both Dnata and Menzies can easily afford to make our members a fair pay offer and should do so.
“No matter how the employers present the offers on the table, they are substantial real-terms pay cuts and unacceptable to our members.
“Unite is dedicated to defending and enhancing our members’ jobs, pay and conditions and the workers at Heathrow will receive the union’s complete support.”
The majority of flights from Heathrow’s terminals 2, 3 and 4 would be severely disrupted by the strike.
Balloting opens today and ends November 3.
Dnata offered its workers a five percent pay increase, while Menzies workers were offered a two to six per cent pay raise.
Unite stated that the offers are “far below the real rate of inflation, which currently stands at 12.3 per cent”.
Kevin Hall, from the union, said: “Strike action will inevitably cause severe disruption and delays across Heathrow, especially for football supporters travelling to the World Cup.
“However, this dispute is entirely of Dnata’s and Menzies’ own making and they know what to do to resolve this, which is to make our members a fair pay offer.”
This follows a summer filled with travel disasters that included strikes on trains, planes and tubes.