New York: American Airlines is ending service to four US cities after the Labour Day holiday weekend in early September because of a pilot shortage.
Texas-based American Airlines has announced that will no longer serve Islip and Ithaca in New York; Toledo in Ohio; and Dubuque in Iowa beginning on September 7 due to a lack of pilots, the company said in a statement on Tuesday (Jun 21). All four cities are currently served by AA’s regional affiliates and have up to two daily flights to larger hubs.
Earlier this month, American CEO Robert Isom said it had grounded about 100 regional jets because it couldn’t find enough workers. The spokesperson said that American had reduced its regional flying in recent months because of the regional pilot shortage, adding that it may take “some time” before staffing levels return to normal.
A number of other major airlines in the US have already announced the cancellation of thousands of flights between now and Labour Day weekend because of the ongoing pilot shortage. Southwest Airlines has cut back on almost 20,000 flights through September 5, as the company is aiming to hire 10,000 new workers to help keep up with travel demands. Delta Airlines also said they were cutting 100 flights daily from July 1 to August 7. “We have been working on our days off, flying a record amount of overtime to help you get to your destination,” Delta said recently in an open letter to travellers.
Airlines including Delta, JetBlue, Alaska, Lufthansa, and British Airways have cut their summer schedules due to surging demand and staffing challenges. Tens of thousands of US flights — both domestic and international — were delayed or cancelled over the Juneteenth and Father’s Day weekend.
