PORTLAND, Ore. — Alaska Airlines canceled dozens of flights to the U.S. West Coast on Friday as off-duty pilots picketed in several major cities over a deadlock in nearly three years of contract negotiations, and the airline said more cancellations were possible through the weekend.
More than 120 Alaska Airlines flights were canceled — about 9% of its operations — and about 15,300 passengers were affected, the airline said in a statement. Canceled flights included 66 in Seattle; 20 in Portland, Oregon; 10 in Los Angeles; and seven in San Francisco, according to flight-tracking website flightaware.com. More than a dozen flights in Anchorage were also affected, according to Flight Aware.
At the same time, pilots were holding a rally and picketing in all of those cities, according to a union website. Air Lines Pilots Association pilots protested in New York City last week outside of the airline’s Investor Relations Day in a precursor to Friday’s picket line. Those who stood on the picket line Friday said they were off duty and not responsible for the canceled flights.
“It takes everyone in Alaska to run a successful and reliable operation. Today we fell short. We are grateful to all employees who work hard to get our guests where they need to go,” the airline said in the statement, which made no mention of the picket line.
The cancellations come as air travel returns to pre-pandemic levels and demand rises as many Americans head off for spring break for long-delayed vacations. Frustrated travelers took to social media about botched vacation plans, reporting there was a wait of up to 10 hours to speak to an airline representative about rebooking flights. Many said they could not fly out for a day or two.
Robyn Dold of Battle Ground, Wash., had planned to fly to Missouri with her husband, daughter and son-in-law on Friday to attend her father-in-law’s funeral. The family received an email from Alaska at midnight – six hours before departure – saying their flight was cancelled.
Dold spent hours on Friday in an airline queue and then in line at Portland International Airport, only to be told Alaska couldn’t get her to the funeral on time — or even to a city within 10 hours’ drive.
“We’d go with the flow if it were a vacation, but this is something that has a due date that we can’t change and it’s heartbreaking,” she said in a phone interview. “My husband is beside himself. His father was his very best friend.”
Dold, who was scheduled to deliver the eulogy, will instead be watching the funeral in a one-way livestream with her husband from home, she said.
“To be honest, what irritates me the most is that we were not informed in advance that this is possible. We could have taken other precautions,” said Dold. “This is really disappointing.”
Pilots on a picket line at Los Angeles International Airport said the cancellations were the result of understaffing by Alaska Airlines, which has reduced during the pandemic and been too slow to respond as travel demand picks up again.
“Everyone here has their days off. Alaska Airlines has staffing issues. They may not want to say it, but they have staffing issues,” said Steve Van Metre, an Alaska Airlines captain.
“We’ve had several pilots who left to other airlines because of the quality of life issues with this company.”
The pilots have been in contract negotiations with the airline for almost three years and both sides are at an impasse.
The union says Alaska Airlines failed to adequately prepare for a return to flying after the pandemic and failed to take the necessary steps to retain or attract pilots when demand returned. Issues that remain to be resolved include job security, work rules and quality of life provisions that offer flexibility and reasonable schedules, it said in a statement, and the current pilot contract falls well short of peer airlines in several key areas.
Alaska Airlines said Friday it values its pilots and respects their right to picket lines, but it also needs to negotiate a deal that will allow the airline to maintain growth and profitability. The airline is working to recoup $2.3 billion in losses from the COVID-19 pandemic, it said in a statement.
“A new pilot contract remains a top priority for Alaska,” Jenny Wetzel, vice president of industrial relations at Alaska Airlines, said in a statement. “We have put a package on the table that is competitive and addresses the issues most important to our pilots.”
The airline said it offers competitive salaries for its pilots. For example, the average salary for an Alaska Airlines captain is $341,000 a year, the airline said.
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Associated Press videographer Eugene Garcia in Los Angeles contributed to this report.