Airlines defend performance marred by fall schedule disruptions
US airlines, responding to lawmakers asking if $54b in pandemic aid shouldn’t have prevented widespread flight disruptions earlier this year, say the funds saved more than 735,000 jobs and kept the nation’s air-transportation network functioning. There has been no evidence that any of the federal Covid-19 relief package has been misused, and it ensured the industry remained intact after losing almost all its customers in early 2020, Nicholas Calio, president of the Airlines for America trade group, said in a letter to House lawmakers Tuesday. “The Covid-19 crisis has been the most devastating challenge the U.S. airline industry has ever faced,” Calio said in the letter. “The recovery will be longer and more difficult than the industry’s recovery after the September 11th attacks.” Widespread flight cancellations earlier this year at airlines including American Airlines and Southwest have prompted questions about how how carriers spent the federal aid -- including $35.6b in grants for payrolls at the 11 largest passenger carriers. Calio was responding to a Dec. 1 inquiry from House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Peter DeFazio, an Oregon Democrat, and the committee’s top Republican, Sam Graves of Missouri. The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee under Chairwoman Maria Cantwell, a Washington Democrat, plans to hold a hearing on the airline aid package on Dec. 15 at which several executives are expected to testify, committee spokeswoman Tricia Enright said. The flight disruptions occurred due to a variety of reasons, such as a more rapid increase in passenger demand than expected, the reluctance of some furloughed employees to return to work and the time lag required to recertify safety-critical employees such as pilots, Calio said. Weather also played a role, he said. <br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2021-12-08/general/airlines-defend-performance-marred-by-fall-schedule-disruptions
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Airlines defend performance marred by fall schedule disruptions
US airlines, responding to lawmakers asking if $54b in pandemic aid shouldn’t have prevented widespread flight disruptions earlier this year, say the funds saved more than 735,000 jobs and kept the nation’s air-transportation network functioning. There has been no evidence that any of the federal Covid-19 relief package has been misused, and it ensured the industry remained intact after losing almost all its customers in early 2020, Nicholas Calio, president of the Airlines for America trade group, said in a letter to House lawmakers Tuesday. “The Covid-19 crisis has been the most devastating challenge the U.S. airline industry has ever faced,” Calio said in the letter. “The recovery will be longer and more difficult than the industry’s recovery after the September 11th attacks.” Widespread flight cancellations earlier this year at airlines including American Airlines and Southwest have prompted questions about how how carriers spent the federal aid -- including $35.6b in grants for payrolls at the 11 largest passenger carriers. Calio was responding to a Dec. 1 inquiry from House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Peter DeFazio, an Oregon Democrat, and the committee’s top Republican, Sam Graves of Missouri. The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee under Chairwoman Maria Cantwell, a Washington Democrat, plans to hold a hearing on the airline aid package on Dec. 15 at which several executives are expected to testify, committee spokeswoman Tricia Enright said. The flight disruptions occurred due to a variety of reasons, such as a more rapid increase in passenger demand than expected, the reluctance of some furloughed employees to return to work and the time lag required to recertify safety-critical employees such as pilots, Calio said. Weather also played a role, he said. <br/>
