PORTLAND, ORE (AP)-Dozens of flights from the west coast were canceled by Alaska Airlines on Friday, the same day when on-duty pilots ventured into a standoff on the airline’s three-year contract.
The airline canceled more than 100 Alaska Airlines flights, including 66 to Seattle, 20 to Portland, Oregon, 10 to Los Angeles and seven to San Francisco, according to flight tracking site flightaware.com. The union’s website says the pilots mobilized and staked out in all of these cities.
Airline Pilots Association pilots also protested last week in New York, ahead of the airline’s investor relations day, as a prelude to the picket line on Friday. Those in the picket line on Friday said they were out of duty and canceled Alaska.
Cancellations and picking occur after air travel moves to pre-pandemic levels and demand rises as many Americans go on spring break for long-delayed vacations. Failed travelers posted information on social media about false vacation plans and said there was a 10-hour wait to speak to an airline representative about flight schedules. Many said they could not fly for a day or two.
Robin Doldy, of Battle Ground, Washington, is scheduled to fly to Missouri on Friday to attend his father -in -law’s funeral with his wife, son, and son -in -law. The family received a letter from Alaska at midnight – six hours before the flight – stating that their flight had been canceled.
Doldi stopped the airline for a few hours on Friday and then at Portland International Airport, only to see that Alaska couldn’t take them to the funeral on time – or even within 10 hours in the city.
“We would have been next in the flow if it was a vacation, but it’s something with a deadline that we can’t change, and it’s frustrating,” he said in a phone interview. “My wife is by her side. His father was his best friend. “
Doldy, who was supposed to deliver the sermon, instead attended the live funeral unilaterally with his wife from home, he said.
“What I think is the most annoying, to be honest, we were not informed in advance that this was an opportunity. “We can make other arrangements in advance,” Dold said. “It’s something that’s really frustrating.”
The pilots had been negotiating a contract with the airline for nearly three years and both sides had stopped.
The union said Alaska Airlines was not sufficiently prepared to return to air travel after the pandemic and did not take the necessary steps to retain or attract pilots when demand returned. Issues that still need to be addressed include occupational safety, labor rules and quality of life provisions that ensure flexibility and a reasonable schedule, the statement said, while the current pilot contract lags far behind comparable airlines. in some major divisions.
Alaska Airlines said Friday that it values its pilots and respects their right to the picket line, but must also negotiate a deal that will allow the airline to maintain growth and profitability. Alaska Airlines is working to recover $ 2.3 billion in damage from the COVID-19 pandemic, the statement said.
The airline said it is currently offering a competitive salary to its pilots. For example, the average salary of an Alaska Airlines captain is currently $ 341,000 per year, the airline said.
Associated Press videographer Eugene Garcia in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
Source: Huffpost
