London's High Court rules Thomas Cook pilot strike can go ahead

(Adds reaction from Thomas Cook (Frankfurt: A0MR3W - news) )

LONDON, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Pilots for Thomas Cook Airlines are set to strike later this week in a dispute over pay after London's High Court on Wednesday refused to block the industrial action.

A judge refused Thomas Cook's request for an injunction to stop the strike, a spokeswoman for the British Airline Pilots' Association (BALPA) said.

"BALPA has always been confident in (last month's) decisive ballot result and was disappointed that Thomas Cook decided to challenge it legally rather than spending time and effort bringing an acceptable offer to the table," Brian Strutton, BALPA General Secretary, said in a statement.

"However, we robustly defended our right to strike and the judge rejected Thomas Cook’s arguments about the wording of the ballot paper."

The strike is due to begin at 0300 on Friday, and will last 12 hours.

Thomas Cook said all its flights will operate during the stoppage.

"We’re disappointed with the court’s ruling and we will continue to work with BALPA representatives to come to an agreement on their pay claim," a spokesman for Thomas Cook said in a statement.

"Our priority is to make sure all of our customers can still fly on holiday and back home with us during the strike period." (Reporting by Alistair Smout; editing by Stephen Addison)