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Chronology of the February 1999 labor disrupt at American Airlines. The pilots, protesting against the badly managed integration of the new Reno Air pilots, made a massive sickout.

Originally published in March 1999.

the american airlines virus
by Sergio Ortega

just like that, everybody hates AA.
and there's no longer "something special in the air".

illions of travellers stuck on the ground, or having their trip delayed. Furious crowds at the airports, waiting in line to get somewhere as soon as possible. Congestion at the reservations offices. "Is my flight cancelled?"... No, this is not caused by some snowstorm closing down the airports, but rather something controllable. A pilot strike... erm... actually a "sickout", or the art of grounding aircraft and passengers, for American Airlines. If it was supposed to be true, we would believe this mass "sickout" is in fact an epidemic... Is the doomsday virus here yet? No, no... The "American Airlines" virus? Maybe.

December 1998:
AMR Corp, the parent company of American Airlines, purchased Reno Air, in December 1998 for $124 million. Reno Air (IATA Code: QQ - ICAO Code: ROA) is a regional airline flying MD-80 series aircraft to many cities around the nation, mostly the Western Coast and Canada. Before the merger, Reno Air was already a member of American Airlines' AAdvantage frequent flyer program.

February 5, 1999:
The Allied Pilots Association (APA) and AA pilots request faster integration of the 300 new Reno Air pilots, so that they get paid as much as the regular AA pilots (average annual salary: $150,000). In fact, Reno Air pilots are paid half the salary of their new AA colleagues, on the same contract terms. If the salary difference is not solved, it could eventually lead to the phasing out of the higher-paid pilots. The two parties don't reach an agreement.

AA Pilots On Strike - Smiling Pilot who looks like Dean Martin in the movie Airport

AA Pilots On Strike - Smiling Pilot who looks like Dean Martin in the movie Airport

February 6, 1999:
Beginning of the "crisis". Many pilots are "unexpectedly absent" or call in sick, even though the pilot union didn't call for a strike. In other words, the pilots refuse to work overtime as a form of protest. Because of the pilot shortage, AA cancels more than 200 flights, which represent about 10% of the total flights for the day. This number will substantially increase on the days to come. The pilots could be really "sick", since federal regulations require "stressed-out" pilots to stay home, as the implied stress may come from the labor dispute.

February 9, 1999:
American Airlines cancells 730 flights, more than a third of the total scheduled flights. This includes almost all of the flights leaving from John F. Kennedy Airport in New York, one of AA's hubs. The AA pilots and the airline continue negociations at the airline's headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas. The AA pilots request that the airline brings the Reno Air pilots under the seniority list, and pay them benefits. On the other hand, AA says it made it clear that Reno Air wouldn't fly as a separate airline, and that the pilots would get paid full salary as soon as the integration process is complete. On an official statement, AA adds it even increased Reno Air pilots' salary during the integration process.

February 10, 1999:
U.S. District Judge Joe Kendall issued a temporary restraining order, barring the 9,200 pilots from calling sick en masse", CNN says. AA is pleased with this order and hopes it will stop the growth of the number of cancelled flights (990 on February 10, or 44% of the total flights).

February 11, 1999:
Not the expected result. The APA is blamed for not communicating with the 9,200 AA pilots about the federal order. And the cancelled flights toll did not regress, it even increased, with 1,170 flights cancelled, almost half of the scheduled flights for the day.

February 12, 1999:
A lawyer for AA says angry passengers caused a "near-riot" at Miami International Airport. CNN says: "The airline wants the judge to hold the pilots' union in contempt of an order issued Wednesday that was aimed at returning pilots to work."

February 13, 1999:
Done! A federal judge found the APA in contempt for ignoring the court order to end the mass sickout. In other words, the APA will be heavily fined and has to put 10 million US Dollars (USD) in deposit to the court. After this announcement, the number of pilots on the "sick" list decreases dramatically.

February 15, 1999:
Almost all pilots are forced to return to work, but still more than 170 flights are cancelled. The airline announces the schedule will be back to normal within the next two days. In the meantime, negociations continue. The airline announces it will gradually increase the salary of the new Reno Air pilots, but the Union requests immediate increase, which AA cannot afford.

February 17, 1999:
Operations are near normal schedule. Discussions are made for the amount the Union will pay in damages for not complying with the court's order. The latest offer by AA to its pilots is a 50% immediate increase of the salary of the new Reno Air pilots.

The crisis is almost over, but left over 500,000 travelers almost by themselves after the cancellation of over 7,000 flights: a total cost of more than 150 million USD overall revenue loss for American Airlines. the airline said.

Editor's note: In August 1999, Reno Air was completely merged with American Airlines and the beautiful MD-80 series aircraft bearing the Rocky mountains on the tail were progressively being replaced by American Airlines colors.