Cimber CEO apologises for bogus Norwegian bookings

COPENHAGEN, Jan 19 (Reuters) - The head of Danish airline Cimber Sterling apologised to the chief of rival Norwegian Air Shuttle on Tuesday for prank bookings of cut-priced Norwegian tickets placed by Cimber employees.

Norwegian earlier accused Cimber employees, including some senior executives, of sabotage by reserving hundreds of low-priced Norwegian tickets under bogus names like Donald Duck.

"I have called (Norwegian CEO) Bjorn Kjos and given him an unreserved apology for what occurred," Cimber Sterling Chief Executive Jacob Krogsgaard said in a statement, calling it a case of "misguided loyalty" on the part of Cimber staff.

"We cannot interfere in what our employees are doing privately, but I want to stress that it is not the way Cimber Sterling wants to do business," Krogsgaard said.

Norwegian has identified more than 650 bookings in imaginary names that it has linked through credit card numbers to Cimber employees, a spokeswoman said, adding that the goal seemed to be to prevent real passengers from getting the low-priced fares.

The reservations -- some in names of Norwegian's chief executive and chief financial officer -- were for flights on a new Danish domestic route between Copenhagen and Karup airport, Norwegian said.

Norwegian offered the tickets at an introductory price of 1 Danish crown ($0.19).

On Tuesday, the second day of the Norwegian service on the Copenhagen-Karup route, the airline counted 160 tickets that went unused on three different flights, its spokeswoman said.

"We had to cancel these tickets and make them available for real passengers," spokeswoman Anne-Sissel Skaanvik said. "It costs us money when we have work to cancel the tickets. There are many people involved in this, and it is not for free."

Skaanvik declined to provide names, but said the Tuesday "no-shows" also pointed to Cimber employees. "We are going through the names today and linking them to credit cards," she said.

Skaanvik declined to give an estimate of the number of tickets booked in fake names, but said it was clear that it had risen beyond an initially reported 650.

"One person has booked 458 tickets, and another 100, and two more than 50, and two Cimber board members 18," she said. "I am sure it is more than 650 ... There is competition, but I don't think this is a good way to go about it." (Reporting by John Acher; Editing by David Holmes) ($1=5.202 Danish Crown)