FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Capt. Dennis Tajer, 847-902-8481/Gregg Overman, 817-302-2250

Ahead of Surging Thanksgiving Travel, Pilots Helping Passengers

Cards direct passengers to helpful resources for resolving travel woes resulting from American Airlines’ scheduling mismanagement

FORT WORTH, Texas (Nov. 22, 2022) – The Allied Pilots Association (APA), representing the 15,000 pilots of American Airlines, has launched a campaign to aid passengers impacted by delays and cancellations resulting from American Airlines’ unreliable schedules. Pilots are distributing cards that direct disrupted passengers to resources for resolving common issues resulting from American’s poor performance and scheduling mismanagement.

Pilots distribute the handouts, which are the size of business cards, to passengers whose flights have been delayed or canceled, and the cards’ QR code directs those passengers to resources to resolve their travel troubles. Those items include American Airlines’ customer service number and social media accounts as well as the Department of Transportation’s Airline Customer Service Dashboard, which shows what American Airlines has committed to provide passengers after a scheduling disruption.

“This holiday season may be the busiest in years, and we want to help our passengers, who are rightly frustrated with American’s overtaxed and mismanaged operation,” said APA President Captain Ed Sicher. “Pilots get it. We’re all too familiar with scheduling disruptions resulting from this mismanagement team, which refuses to listen to our proposed reforms that would fix the problems.”

This campaign is part of the union’s ongoing efforts to raise public awareness of the challenges that passengers and pilots face when flying with American Airlines – efforts that include a digital advertising and a narrative video series. Those videos, which have garnered more than 6.5 million combined views, include the following:

• “We Are Worth It” explains why pilots deserve reliable schedules from American Airlines.
• “Clouds On The Horizon” spotlights alarm from investors and analysts regarding American’s schedule mismanagement and refusal to negotiate a worthy contract that reflects pilots’ value and needs.
• “Rescheduled” depicts a scenario that should be familiar to anyone who has contended with American’s persistent delays and cancellations.

Founded in 1963, the Allied Pilots Association — the largest independent pilots union in the United States — is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. APA represents the 15,000 pilots of American Airlines, including several hundred pilots on full-time military leave of absence serving in the armed forces. The union’s website is AlliedPilots.org.