Pilots at Lufthansa will go on strike on Friday, their union Cockpit said, after pay negotiations with the German airline collapsed.

The industrial action affecting Lufthansa passenger airline and Lufthansa Cargo will begin at 00:01 am and end at 23:59 pm. 

The airline said it would have to cancel almost all flights to Germany as a result.

It voiced regret at the union's decision, saying it had put forward a "very good offer" that would raise the pilots' basic wages by 900 euros a month.

Cockpit is seeking 5.5 percent wage increase by the end of the year, automatic compensation for inflation and an adjustment of its salary grid.

Lufthansa said the entire package sought by the union would raise pilot personnel costs by 40 percent or €900 million. 

The union argued however that to avert labour disputes, the airline must "present a significantly improved offer".

"Currently, we are too far apart. In addition to compensating for the loss of real wages, we now need above all a sustainable solution for the compensation structure in all occupational groups," said Cockpit's negotiator Marcel Groels.

With inflation soaring, collective salary bargaining is expected to be tense in the coming months across Europe.

German consumer prices rose by 7.9 percent in the year to August, according to data published Tuesday by the federal statistics agency Destatis.