Lingering crew shortages, surging demand threaten fall and winter travel seasons
CBSN
Shortages of pilots, flight attendants and gate agents threaten to unravel fall and winter travel plans in the U.S., after a turbulent summer, airline unions say. There's been a surge in fliers, according to the aviation industry, since COVID-19 concerns continue to subside.
The unions spoke at a CBS News travel summit in Washington Tuesday.
Dennis Tajer, an American Airlines pilot and spokesman for the Allied Pilots Association, says recruitment failures and pandemic-era furloughs have hamstrung airlines.
An American Airlines jet with 60 passengers and four crew members aboard collided with an Army helicopter Wednesday night while coming in for a landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington. The Black Hawk helicopter was carrying a crew of three. Officials said early Thursday that everyone on board both aircraft is believed dead, which would make it the deadliest U.S. air crash in nearly a quarter century.