American, Pilot Union Agree Terms For December Flights

American Airlines and the APA union representing its pilots have reached an agreement on terms for staffing its flights in December after a computer error left thousands of flights without pilots over the period.

The Allied Pilots Association said that discussions with the airline led to an agreement in principle that addressed the union’s grievance over “restrictions on premium pay and trip trading for December flying.”

American said the agreement makes sure its flights will operate as scheduled over the December holiday period.

The system failure in the pilot schedule bidding system allowed too many pilots to take time off during one of the busiest travel times of the year.

The airline offered pilots more money to operate some flights during December, but the union filed a grievance saying the airline’s solution violated the pilots’ contracts.

APA, which represents 15,000 pilots at American, said that the scheduling problem had resulted in around 15,000 flights without pilots during December.