AFP - Chilean airports resumed normal activity on Friday, after some 2,000 airport workers launched a country-wide strike that caused flight delays, the General Directorate of Civil Aviation said.

"The strike caused a slowdown of security checks for passengers and delays averaging one hour on domestic flights," the DGAC said in a statement.

"There was no impact on international flights or executive, private or sports flights. No flights were cancelled."

Long lines had formed at the Santiago airport, the largest in the country, where hundreds of passengers were waiting to board flights delayed by the strike.

The directorate insisted the strike did not hurt the safety of passengers or aircraft operations.

"This is a historic national strike. DGAC personnel participated at all the country's airports," DGAC workers' association president Jorge Perez told reporters.

"This strike is not against airline users but against the authorities who have slammed the door in our faces," he told AFP earlier.

The strike, the first by airport employees since 1941, began at 7:00 am (1000 GMT) and ended at 2:00 pm (1700 GMT), affecting air traffic operations, operations, weather services and airport security.

Workers were demanding improvements to their pension plans.

A total of 2,147 workers were affected because their pensions have been based on half pay and not the full amount of their salary for the past 25 years, according to Perez.

"We are excellent workers but we suffer precarious conditions," he said.