FORT WORTH, Texas — Thousands of people were exasperated and upset by the cancellation of more than 3,000 flights at American Airlines this week, and the loudest complaints came from the airline’s own employees.
The pilots union took out full-page newspaper ads that asked, “Why is American Airlines Failing Its Customers?”
Flight attendants have renewed a campaign against stock bonuses for top executives.
There’s nothing new about rocky management-labor relations at American, but this week’s events have driven an even deeper wedge between executives and front-line workers.
American canceled 595 flights on Friday, bringing the running total to about 3,080, and said more flights would be lost Saturday. The cancellations started Tuesday, when American yanked 300 planes out of service to bring them up to federal safety standards on wrapping electrical wires to prevent fires.
The airline’s mechanics and FAA inspectors cleared more of the planes to return to service Friday. American said 226 of its MD-80s were back in service by Friday morning, and it expected the rest to be ready by Saturday night.
The airline thought it had done the repair work two weeks ago, when it scrubbed more than 400 flights, but the FAA said the wiring still wasn’t properly secured and stowed in wheel wells.
Chairman and Chief Executive Gerard Arpey said he took responsibility and that neither American’s mechanics nor the FAA were to blame. He said the company would hire a consultant to help it comply with FAA safety rules in the future.
Arpey said the cost — including vouchers to appease unhappy customers, overtime for maintenance crews, and lost revenue — would run into the tens of millions of dollars. An analyst with Standard &Poor’s estimated it could easily top $30 million.
The cancellations also threatened to cost pilots money, since they only get paid for hours they fly. But on Thursday, the company and the Allied Pilots Association cut a deal that lets pilots get paid for their lost shifts if they were available to fly once the planes were fixed.
The pilots union has emerged as the most vocal critic of the company’s performance this week.
The union took out a full-page advertisement in USA Today on Thursday, accusing the company of failing its customers. The ad showed a man dressed like a business traveler, sitting on a cot and scowling off into the distance.
The ad copy noted recent surveys that have rated American poorly for cancellations, late arrivals and customer satisfaction.
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