Strike By UAL's Attendants Could Strand Fliers
Source: Chicagobusiness.com
Author: Alison Granito
Busy Holiday Period May Prove Tough For Travelers To Find Alternate Flights
With air travel expected to be heavy and airlines booked solid over the holiday weekend, any strikes by United Airlines flight attendants that resulted in service interruptions could leave passengers stranded.
United's chapter of the Association of Flight Attendants said yesterday that random walk outs and strikes that target specific flights or locations may start as early as today, after the bankrupt airline turned their pension plan over to the government yesterday.
Union officials yesterday declined to specify when and where strikes might come, calling potential targets a "closely guarded secret," and continued to maintain their silence today.
"All I can say is that they may begin at any time," said union spokeswoman Sara Nelson Dela Cruz.
Locally, United operates more than 600 flights per day out of O'Hare International Airport, its largest hub. Along with American Airlines, which also operates a hub at O'Hare, the troubled carrier accounts for a significant number of flights out of the airport.
A spokesman for the Chicago Department of Aviation said O'Hare has put extra customer service personnel on alert to assist passengers in the event there is an interruption in service that affects the airport.
"Because of the nature of the strikes themselves, there's not a lot of preparation we can do," said Dan Curtin.
Mr. Curtin also said that the airline has told him that it would do its best to not to leave passengers stranded in the event of cancellations and "do its best to get passengers where they need to go," possibly diverting them to other carriers.
A United spokeswoman said yesterday that the airline is preparing to meet the needs of its customers in the event of any service interruptions, but could not immediately be reached for comment today.
American Airlines spokeswoman Mary Frances Fagan said the carrier's bookings were "chock-a-block full," over the next two or three weeks, showing passenger load rates of 80 to 90 percent most days, meaning passengers on a cancelled United flight may have a rough time finding an open spot.
"The bottom line is, our seats are really, really full this summer," Ms. Fagan said.
As for the effect that cancellations could have on flights into and out of O'Hare, Curtin said that any cancellations would be unlikely to affect the operations of carriers other than United.
Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Tony Molinaro said that the agency will monitor to make sure that all flights have a the required number of flight attendants on board for safety purposes.
The FAA has a contingency plan in place in the "event that there is any kind of service disruption on an airline," whether it stems from a computer system failure or labor strife, according to Mr. Molinaro.
He added cancelled flights that left passengers at the gates would be an "airport issue."
However, when an unusually high number bankrupt US Airways flight attendants and other employees organized a "sick out" over December's busy holiday travel period, the move had far reaching effects, snarling air traffic and leaving many travelers stranded at the carrier's hub in Philadelphia. Also today, United announced it is on track to emerge from bankruptcy this fall and that it plans to file its reorganization plan next month.
