US airlines change international flights in surprising ways
There are many reasons why people hate the airline industry right now. Lost luggage is becoming more and more common, and some angry passengers have become so useless, often caused by stress, that they have forgotten how to act on a plane or society in general. (A drunk guy on Turkish Airlines straight up biting a flight attendant’s finger.)
But the main reason people don’t like to fly anymore is that cancellations and lengthy delays have become so common that Transport Secretary Pete Buttigieg has announced disrupt the aviation industrydemanding that they provide free food and lodging to those wearing costumes that cause inconvenience and further threaten the law.
Several reasons explain the increased prevalence of delays. Weather disruptions caused by climate change are only getting worse, and violent outbreaks in staff leave airlines understaffed at opportune times. But the biggest reason is the aviation industry is very understaffed.
With the airline industry largely closed during the pandemic, many pilots have opted to buy back or retire early, and the airline industry has been criticized for not spending enough to recruit and train a new generation of pilots. In addition, it is difficult for the industry to get the support staff, including flight attendants and help desk staff, necessary to keep the aircraft running, as it is understandable that many people are reluctant to accept it. a job where they will face abuse from angry customers.
American Airlines knows it needs to fix its pilot problem
But it seems the airlines have now realized this pilot issue is getting out of control and are taking steps to fix it. In the recent third quarter earnings callDerek J. Kerr Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, American Airlines Corporation (AAL) “Look, we’re hiring more pilots this year than we’ve had in our history in a given year. So we are looking at hiring almost 2,000 pilots. We’re on track to actually accomplish that from a major perspective.
“But let’s face it. Training more pilots is something we never did before we came out of the pandemic. We have to make sure that all the resources are in the right place whether it’s extra simulators, analog resources or even things like instructors. So that’s all that’s going on. “Our pilot system for the mainline is very strong and our training resources will be perfectly matched to the needs we have going forward,” he added. “
So it seems like at least American Airlines knows it’s worth the investment to get more pilots, even if it means spending a lot on extensive training.
Kerr added: “We don’t hire and let’s face it, we didn’t hire for two years during the pandemic, and not only that, people weren’t in the business. . “And so we have to work our way through that. And you have a supply problem that I think it will come back online. I feel really confident about it. We’re facilitating that through things like our cadet program and making financial vehicles available to everyone. ”
US airlines make a surprising twist on international flights
Elsewhere on the call, Vasu Raja, the company’s chief commercial officer, said that American Airlines would be phasing out the first-class option for international flights, due to reduced demand.
“First class won’t exist…at American Airlines for the simple reason that our customers don’t buy it,” he said.
Instead, the company has been doing well with premium business class seats. Although traveling because business has been down latelylargely because many companies want to save money on airline tickets by joining Zoom meetings, more customers are willing to give it a little more for a more comfortable flight after the pandemic, perhaps for safety reasons, or perhaps just a general feeling that they deserve better during stressful times.
“The quality of business class seats has improved a lot,” added Raja. “And honestly, by eliminating [first class] we can offer more business class seats which is what our customers most want or are most willing to pay for. “