- American Airlines flight attendants have been urged by their union to stop leaving each other in hotels.
- The Association of Professional Flight Attendants said it has seen an increase in crew left behind.
- Staff shortages have led to extensive delays and flight cancellations.
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American Airlines flight attendants have been instructed by their union to no longer leave each other at the hotel if they are late for pickups.
In a memo sent Thursday by the Association of Professional Flight Attendants, which represents more than 24,000 AA crew, the union said more would be left at their hotel if they didn’t show up in time to be picked up.
It is the responsibility of the flight attendants to check out of their hotel in time to take the airline-provided transportation to the airport.
“Our goal is the same as yours – we want all of our members to be able to return home safely to their families, friends and loved ones at the end of their journey,” the memo reads. “Taking extra steps when a crew member is not present will ensure they get home safely.”
Those extra steps, the union said, included designating a flight attendant to take her colleagues to pick them up and asking them to call the missing flight attendant’s room at the front desk.
Failure of the entire crew to arrive on time may result in flight delay.
Airlines are grappling with chaos resulting in delays, cancellations and lost baggage caused by staff shortages as demand rises as COVID-19 restrictions are eased.
This month, passengers on an AA flight were forced to disembark after a five-hour delay because the crew timed the flight. The airline’s CEO, Robert Isom, said it could take months for flight capacity and pilot supplies to be back in sync.
A Spirit Airlines flight attendant told Insider that some employees voluntarily gave up their shifts because they didn’t want to deal with the chaos.
American Airlines did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment.