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<ul class="summary-list"><li>Hurricane Milton is expected to make landfall in Florida on Wednesday night.</li><li>Four international and several smaller airports are set to close ahead of the storm arriving.</li></ul>Four international airports are set to suspend commercial flights as <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/hurricane-milton-tampa-mayor-castor-evacuation-orders-die-warning-helene-2024-10">Hurricane Milton</a> approaches Florida, while American Airlines scheduled extra services for evacuees.Milton intensified into a Category 5 storm — the most severe classification — in the Gulf of Mexico on Monday. It later weakened to an "extremely dangerous" Category 4 storm and is expected to make landfall in Florida on Wednesday night.The National Hurricane Center estimated peak storm surges as high as 15 feet in the Tampa Bay area.Orlando International, Sarasota-Bradenton, St Pete-Clearwater International, and Tampa International airports have all announced closures. All except Orlando are located in counties with mandatory evacuation orders.Tampa International will close Tuesday at 9 a.m., followed by Sarasota-Bradenton at 4 p.m. and St Pete-Clearwater after the last flight departs on Tuesday.As of 7 a.m. Tuesday, close to a third of 158 flights at Tampa International had already been canceled, per FlightAware.Orlando International said it would end commercial operations on Wednesday morning but remain open for emergency, aid, and relief flights. Jet bridges were being tied down in preparation.Several public airports are also closing down, including Peter O. Knight, Tampa Executive, and Plant City.Miami International Airport aid it would remain open but was monitoring the situation and encouraged travelers to confirm their flight status with their airlines.<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://news.aa.com/news/news-details/2024/American-provides-extra-seats-customer-flexibility-in-Florida-ahead-of-Hurricane-Milton-OPS-DIS-10/">American Airlines</a> added several flights to help people evacuate on Monday and Tuesday.It's added 11 flights from Tampa International and one from Sarasota-Bradenton, totaling about 2,000 seats. Passengers can check two bags at no cost.American and other airlines have issued travel alerts and are waiving change fees while some are also waiving cancellation charges.The disruption comes two weeks after <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/pete-buttigieg-elon-musk-hurricane-helene-call-best-thing-2024-10">Hurricane Helene</a> devastated the southeastern US with more than 1,000 flights canceled.A spokesperson for the Federal Aviation Administration said its Joint Crisis Action Team will handle Hurricane Milton centrally from its command center, "so there is a strong coordinated communication and planning effort."At airports, radars are shut down to protect antennae and their motors from wind damage, while air traffic controllers are evacuated from towers to seek shelter in a lower level of the building."The FAA has personnel on the ground to make sure damaged equipment and services are restored quickly to aid in a rapid response to hard-hit areas," the spokesperson said. "Relief and restoration routes are opened to assist after the storm passes."

Airports are closing and American Airlines is operating evacuation flights as Hurricane Milton nears Florida

<keyword id="20018887" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Vistara" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Vistara" meta.hostid="346" meta.entityid="Vistara">Vistara</keyword> will operate the last flight under its brand on November 11 and the full-service carrier's operations will be unified with <keyword id="19896871" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Air-India" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Air India" meta.hostid="346" meta.entityid="Air India">Air India</keyword> from November 12. The government has given its nod for the foreign direct investment by <keyword id="20036942" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Singapore-Airlines" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Singapore Airlines" meta.hostid="346" meta.entityid="Singapore Airlines">Singapore Airlines</keyword> as part of the Air India-Vistara <keyword id="20035800" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="merger" source="keywords">merger</keyword>. Vistara is a joint venture between <keyword id="19924335" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Tata-Group" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Tata Group" meta.hostid="346" meta.entityid="Tata Group">Tata Group</keyword> and Singapore Airlines. Air India is owned by Tata Group. "Starting 03 September 2024, customers will, progressively, no longer be able to make bookings with Vistara for travel on or after 12 November 2024," Vistara said in a release on Friday. Thereafter, Vistara aircraft will be operated by Air India and bookings for the routes operated by these planes will be redirected to Air India's website. "Vistara will continue to take bookings and operate flights as usual till 11 November 2024," the release said. The merger of Vistara with Air India was announced in November 2022 and post-completion of the deal, Singapore Airlines will have a 25.1 per cent stake in Air India. Vistara CEO Vinod Kannan said the merger is about offering passengers more choice with a larger fleet and a wider network while elevating the overall travel experience. "Cross-functional teams from Air India and Vistara have been working together for many months to make the transition of aircraft, flying crew, ground-based colleagues and, most importantly, our valued customers, into the new Air India as seamless as possible," Air India CEO and MD Campbell Wilson said. In a separate release, Air India welcomed the Union Cabinet's approval for the foreign direct investment by Singapore Airlines in the airline. "This is an important milestone that facilitates the merger process between Vistara and Air India, and the broader transformation of the Air India Group," it said.

Vistara to operate last flight under its brand on November 11

<keyword id="24240143" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Chennai-International-Airport" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Chennai International Airport" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Chennai International Airport">Chennai International Airport</keyword> has been temporarily shut down till 7 PM on Saturday in view of <keyword id="24172195" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Cyclone-Fengal" source="keywords">cyclone Fengal</keyword> making landfall today evening. As heavy rainfall and strong winds intensified ahead of the cyclone, it is expected to cross between Karaikal and Mahabalipuram coasts, near Puducherry tonight. Multiple airlines companies already issued travel advisories and updates on their flight plans due to the continuing heavy rainfall in Chennai Tamilnadu. Earlier, <keyword id="19900374" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="IndiGo-airlines" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="IndiGo airlines" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="IndiGo airlines">IndiGo airlines</keyword> diverted all flights scheduled to come to Chennai. "Due to the impact of CycloneFengal in Chennai, flights operating to the city are being diverted. Our crew and airport teams are dedicated to providing all possible support &amp; assistance during this time. We sincerely appreciate your patience and understanding," the X post by IndiGo said. Meanwhile, security at the Puducherry coast has also increased as Puducherry Senior Superintendent of Police, Kalaivanan visited the beaches and the coastal roads in the region and inspected them for preparedness. The authorities have advised the public to not visit beaches in Puducherry as well as in Tamil Nadu's Chennai, including Marina Beach, Pattinapakkam and Edward Elliot Beach. The tourist spots in Puducherry have been closed as a precautionary measure, owing to the impending cyclone Fengal. <keyword id="24240138" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Puducherry-police" source="keywords">Puducherry Police</keyword> in a post on X advised citizens, "In view of Cyclone Fengal, we urge you to exercise extreme caution and avoid visiting beaches and coastal areas" The SSP said that 300 police personnel have been deployed on various coastal roads and beaches. "For the last four days, we have been deploying police personnel along the beaches and apart from that we are also informing the fishermen and people living in the low-lying areas to be careful. Fishermen are not venturing into the sea. Since last night, we have closed all beaches. We have deployed nearly 300 personnel across all the beaches of Puducherry and we are coordinating with the NDRF also," the SSP said. The coastal areas of Puducherry witnessed rough sea and gusty winds on Saturday morning due to the impact of the cyclone. Puducherry received moderate rain, as per IMD, in the morning today but the rough sea was seen more than usual.

Cyclone Fengal: Chennai airport shut till 7 PM

<ul class="summary-list"><li>A Spirit Airlines flight to Haiti was hit by gunfire on Monday.</li><li>JetBlue also said it found a plane that left Haiti was hit by a bullet.</li></ul>Flights to <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/whats-happening-haiti-gang-violence-prime-minister-resigns-2024-3">Haiti</a> have been suspended after bullets hit planes operated by <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/spirit-airlines-unveils-cost-cutting-measures-amid-bankruptcy-reports-2024-10">Spirit Airlines</a> and JetBlue.Monday's Spirit Flight 951 from Fort Lauderdale was on approach to Port-au-Prince, the Haitian capital, before diverting to the neighboring Dominican Republic, according to data from FlightAware.Images circulating on social media appeared to show bullet holes in the interior and exterior of the Airbus A320neo.The BBC reported that a flight attendant suffered minor injuries, but no passengers were hurt."An inspection revealed evidence of damage to the aircraft consistent with gunfire," Spirit said in a statement shared with The Guardian. It added that the flight landed safely and was taken out of service.Also on Monday, a JetBlue flight leaving Port-au-Prince was shot. In a statement shared with Business Insider, the airline said Flight 935 landed safely in New York, but an inspection "later identified that the plane's exterior had been struck by a bullet."JetBlue said it was investigating the incident in collaboration with authorities and has suspended all flights to and from Haiti through December 2. "Our top priority remains the safety and well-being of our customers and crewmembers," it added.According to a notice issued by the Federal Aviation Administration, all flights to and from Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince were temporarily suspended for a week.American Airlines said in a statement to BI that its daily service from Miami to Port-au-Prince has been suspended until next Monday due to the airport closure. "We will continue to monitor the situation with safety and security top of mind and will adjust our operation as needed," it added.Spirit did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BI outside US working hours. It has issued a travel alert waiving change fees for flights to and from Haiti through next Monday. The US Embassy in Haiti issued a security alert on Monday warning people not to travel to the country. It said it was "aware of gang-led efforts" to block travel to and from the capital.

Airlines are suspending flights to Haiti after a Spirit plane was hit by gunfire

<keyword id="19923231" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Air-India-Express" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Air India Express" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Air India Express">Air India Express</keyword> has termited at least 25 <keyword id="21572930" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="cabin-crew-members" source="keywords">cabin crew members</keyword>, a day after hundreds of <keyword id="19916568" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="employees" source="keywords">employees</keyword> reported sick and failed to report to work that led to disruptions to <keyword id="19954208" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="flight-operations" source="keywords">flight operations</keyword>. According to sources within the airline, the management on Wednesday terminated cabin crew members who took <keyword id="20299395" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="sick-leave" source="keywords">sick leave</keyword> between Tuesday and Wednesday due to their unprofessional behaviour, which resulted in inconvenience to thousands of passengers. The <keyword id="21571427" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="mass-sick-leave" source="keywords">mass sick leave</keyword> was considered a pre-meditated and concerted abstention from work without any justifiable reason, violating Air India Express Limited employee service rules. The decision to terminate the employees was made as their actions violated the conditions outlined in their employment contracts, leading to their immediate termination. The disruption caused by the mass sick leave affected more than 95 flights of Air India Express between Tuesday evening and Wednesday, impacting over 10,000 passengers. The disruption in flight operations stemmed from the delay and cancellation of over 90 international and domestic flights due to cabin crew members reporting sick. In response to this, Air India Express CEO, Aloke Singh, announced plans to reduce flight operations in the coming days. Singh said that since Tuesday evening, "over 100 of cabin crew colleagues have reported sick prior to their rostered flight duty, at the last minute, severely disrupting our operations. Because this action was mostly by colleagues assigned L1 role, the impact was disproportionate, disrupting 90+ flights even though other colleagues reported for duty." He emphasised that the behaviour of a few does not represent the dedication of the majority of the airline's cabin crew, who continue to serve guests with dedication and pride. "This act is certainly not representative of the 2,000-odd cabin crew colleagues in the company who continue to respond to the call of duty and serve our guests with dedication and pride. I am thankful to all who are standing by the airline in this hour of crisis," he said in a statement. Singh invited staff for discussions to address any concerns they may have and assured that all communication channels are open. The cancellations and delays prompted the Ministry of Civil Aviation to seek a detailed report from Air India Express. The ministry urged the airline to promptly resolve the issues and ensure that passengers are provided with facilities as per DGCA norms. Sources within the ministry revealed that cancellations and delays began on Tuesday night, continuing into Wednesday morning, which led to flight operations being curtailed due to a sudden shortage of crew members. Some senior crew members allegedly switched off their mobile phones just before flight operations, citing health issues. SEE ALSO:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/indegene-ipo-allotment-how-to-check-allotment-gmp-listing-date-and-more/articleshow/109952516.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/indegene-ipo-allotment-how-to-check-allotment-gmp-listing-date-and-more/articleshow/109952516.cms" target="_blank">Indegene IPO allotment – How to check allotment, GMP, listing date and more</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news/google-wallet-launched-in-india-store-your-loyalty-cards-boarding-passes-and-more/articleshow/109941139.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news/google-wallet-launched-in-india-store-your-loyalty-cards-boarding-passes-and-more/articleshow/109941139.cms" target="_blank">Google Wallet launched in India – store your loyalty cards, boarding passes and more</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/webstories/top-selling-cars-in-india-in-april-2024-tata-punch-continues-to-dominate/slidelist/109909744.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/webstories/top-selling-cars-in-india-in-april-2024-tata-punch-continues-to-dominate/slidelist/109909744.cms" target="_blank">Top-selling cars in India in April 2024 – Tata Punch continues to dominate</a>

Air India Express terminates 25 employees, day after mass sick leave

Faced with <keyword id="21571465" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="cabin-crew-shortage" source="keywords">cabin crew shortage</keyword>, <keyword id="19923231" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Air-India-Express" source="keywords">Air India Express</keyword> on Thursday cancelled 74 <keyword id="19980901" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="flights" source="keywords">flights</keyword> and said <keyword id="19896871" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Air-India" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Air India" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Air India">Air India</keyword> will operate services on 20 of its routes to minimise disruptions. A section of cabin crew has reported sick to protest against alleged mismanagement at the airline, which has resulted in the cancellation of more than 90 flights since Tuesday night. "We will be operating 292 flights today. We have mobilised all resources and Air India will support us by operating on 20 of our routes. However, 74 of our flights stand cancelled and we urge our guests booked to fly with us to check if their flight is affected by the disruption before heading to the airport," the airline said in a statement. In case their flight is cancelled or delayed beyond three hours, the carrier said the passengers may opt for a full refund or reschedule to a later date without any fees. The number of <keyword id="632671" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="cancelled-flights" source="Orion">cancelled flights</keyword> at 74 translates to around 20 per cent of the airline's scheduled daily flights. Earlier in the day, sources said the airline has issued termination notices to 25 cabin crew members who had reported sick and asked others to join back for duty by 4 pm on Thursday. Against this backdrop, Air India Express said it is taking appropriate steps against certain individuals. "While we will continue to engage with our cabin crew colleagues with a commitment to address any concern, we are taking appropriate steps against certain individuals as their actions have caused grave inconvenience to thousands of our guests," it added. SEE ALSO:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/indegene-ipo-allotment-how-to-check-allotment-gmp-listing-date-and-more/articleshow/109952516.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/indegene-ipo-allotment-how-to-check-allotment-gmp-listing-date-and-more/articleshow/109952516.cms" target="_blank">Indegene IPO allotment – How to check allotment, GMP, listing date and more</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news/google-wallet-launched-in-india-store-your-loyalty-cards-boarding-passes-and-more/articleshow/109941139.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news/google-wallet-launched-in-india-store-your-loyalty-cards-boarding-passes-and-more/articleshow/109941139.cms" target="_blank">Google Wallet launched in India – store your loyalty cards, boarding passes and more</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/webstories/top-selling-cars-in-india-in-april-2024-tata-punch-continues-to-dominate/slidelist/109909744.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/webstories/top-selling-cars-in-india-in-april-2024-tata-punch-continues-to-dominate/slidelist/109909744.cms" target="_blank">Top-selling cars in India in April 2024 – Tata Punch continues to dominate</a>

Air India Express cancels 74 flights due to cabin crew shortage, to operate 292 flights

After facing significant <keyword id="20192095" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="flight-disruptions" source="keywords">flight disruptions</keyword> recently, <keyword id="21269688" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Vistara-CEO" source="keywords">Vistara CEO</keyword> <keyword id="20128232" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Vinod-Kannan" source="keywords">Vinod Kannan</keyword> on Thursday told the airline staff that the "worst is behind us" and operations have already stabilised. Pilot woes have forced the <keyword id="21105887" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Tata-Group-airline" source="keywords">Tata Group airline</keyword> to temporarily cut down capacity by 10 per cent or 25-30 flights daily. While acknowledging that things should have been planned better, Kannan said it has been a "learning experience". He also said it has been a challenging start to the new financial year and the airline faced significant operational disruption from March 31 to April 2. "The anxiety and frustration felt by our customers was matched in even measure to the pain that all of us felt in seeing our much-loved brand drawing negative commentary from various quarters... I assure you that the worst is behind us, and we have already stabilised our operations, with our on-time performance (OTP) increasing to 89 per cent on 9 April 2024 (second highest among all Indian airlines)," he said in a message to the staff. The full-service carrier has around 6,500 people, including about 1,000 pilots. In the wake of the disruptions, the top management of the airline had held a virtual meeting with the pilots. One of the reasons for the disruptions was also that some section of pilots reporting sick to protest against the new contract that will result in pay revision. According to Kannan, there were a multitude of reasons for the disruptions, including ATC delays, bird hits, and maintenance activities early last month. "We were stretched in our pilot rosters and there was not enough resilience to withstand injects that we would otherwise have weathered. We could and should have planned better, and this has been a learning experience for us which we will review thoroughly," the <keyword id="20018887" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Vistara" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Vistara" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Vistara">Vistara</keyword> chief said. Most of the cancellations were in the domestic network and the carrier is working on plans for May and beyond. "While the events of the last week may seem like a setback, the hallmark of our organisation has always been that we have bounced back from tough situations ' and emerged stronger. "... I trust each of you to continue to put in all efforts to ensure that we do not let our brand, and our customer, down," Kannan said. As we emerge from this difficult phase, he said it is this commitment to being a customer-oriented airline that will help it bounce back stronger. The airline has also reached out to customers impacted by the cancellations and delays over the affected period. "We have provided the necessary compensation as per the regulatory mandate, and have also offered additional service recovery vouchers for passengers whose flights were significantly delayed," the Vistara chief said. The carrier has 70 aircraft in its fleet and is to operate more than 300 flights daily in the ongoing summer schedule. "Dealing with disappointed customers is never easy but amidst all the chaos, we have received feedback on how some of you went beyond the call of duty to assist our customers to the extent possible," Kannan said and expressed gratitude to the pilots for cooperating and stepping up to support operations.

Vistara CEO says 'worst is behind us', flight operations have stabilised

<ul class="summary-list"><li>American Airlines runs its giant aircraft operation from a tornado-withstanding facility in Texas.</li><li>The Integrated Operations Center houses over 20 teams and supports nearly 6,000 daily flights.</li></ul><a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/airline-pilot-pay-salary-american-delta-united-captain-first-officer-2024-4">American Airlines' pilots, flight attendants</a>, and airport staff are the face of nearly 6,000 flights operated by the carrier around the world each day.However, a team of nearly <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/pilot-shortage-american-airlines-heres-why-2021-12">1,700 other employees</a> who work behind the scenes in a giant operational center hidden from the public is just as essential to plane movement.American invited Business Insider to tour its Integrated Operations Center, or <a target="_blank" href="https://s202.q4cdn.com/986123435/files/doc_downloads/fact-sheets/hub/IOC-fact-sheet-2024.pdf">IOC</a>, at its headquarters in Dallas/Fort Worth. For privacy reasons, the company requested photos of certain screens, and employees' faces be blurred.<div type="image" title="The American Airlines IOC building in Texas." height="3024" width="4032" msid="110342415" hostid="261"></div>Mark Groat, American's IOC system customer service manager who led the mid-May tour, described the 149,000-square-foot, tornado-resistant IOC as the "nerve center" of the airline.It runs 24 hours a day, every day of the year. The complex houses over 20 teams responsible for dispatching planes, monitoring weather, organizing maintenance and cargo, and preventing misconnects, among myriad other duties.<h2 id="5ed1178e-7e29-404c-8a58-bf60db99ba7f">The IOC doesn't look like your typical cubicle office</h2>American's open-space IOC is strategically set up to enable communication and collaboration between the teams, Groat said.For example, the lights are dimmed to reduce strain when looking at screens all day, and the phones use a color light system above each seat to indicate if that person is on a call.<div type="image" title="Inside the AA IOC with people sitting at screens." height="2966" width="3955" msid="110342416" hostid="261"></div>"A red light means you're on the phone, and a green light means your phone is ringing," Groat said, noting the maintenance team, for example, has a line to airport hangars. "So, you can kind of gauge just looking over the floor what kind of day we're having."He noted on busy days when everyone is talking and walking around, white noise is pumped into the IOC to keep the room quiet.<h2 id="f0a984f2-3998-400e-af69-162e230961a6">American uses automation to help manage irregular operations</h2><a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/most-on-time-airlines-in-north-america-ranked-2023-12">American's delay and cancellation rate</a> isn't the best in the US, but the carrier climbed to third place in 2023, according to the aviation data provider Cirium. It lost to Delta Air Lines and narrowly edged out United Airlines.All of these disruptions pass through the heart of the IOC in a section called the "bridge." This is where the IOC director oversees and guides the thousands of daily flights.<div type="image" title="American teammembers working on the &quot;bridge&quot;" height="2612" width="3482" msid="110342417" hostid="261"></div>Alongside the director are managers who work with American's hubs, like Dallas/Fort Worth, Miami, and Charlotte, to build plans for "irregular operations" that will impact the fewest customers possible. They're looking at things like staffing, resources, and gate constraints, Goat said.While much of this analysis is done manually, Goat said American launched a new automation tool last year known as the "Hub Efficiency Analytics Tool," or HEAT, to help dispatchers, coordinators, and other employees make more proactive decisions.It analyzes things like when a crew member exceeds their regulated duty period, which flights have the greatest number of connecting customers, how many top-tier loyalty customers are flying, and whether impacted flights are domestic or international — domestic being easier to accommodate.<div type="image" title="A giant television near the center of the IOC displays the diversion airports used at that time, with the colors indicating how close to capacity each is." height="3024" width="4032" msid="110342418" hostid="261"></div>"Instead of separate units canceling flights one by one and customers being rebooked repeatedly, HEAT allows us to update the system with all the delays and cancellations at one time," Groat said."This maintains the integrity of connecting bags, and it means we aren't arbitrarily rerouting somebody who could have ultimately made their connection."On the day of my visit, smoke from a wildfire in the Bahamas was impacting operations at Nassau International Airport. IOC employees were walking desk-to-desk discussing options, while others were analyzing how flights would be impacted — which is where HEAT could come into play."We'll most likely divert en route planes to Miami to wait out the event," Groat said. "If the delay times get longer and crew time becomes an issue, we'll have to evaluate options like canceling some flights or consolidating two into one so we can get our resources back into the system and where they need to be."<h2 id="48ea96de-a4bd-434d-a873-9c673e6b9a52">Crew scheduling and dispatch are among the biggest teams</h2>Planes can't go anywhere without at least two pilots and at least one flight attendant per 50 seats. Crew scheduling is responsible for keeping some 14,000 crew on track every day.There are three different areas within the crew scheduling department, Groat said. One handles day-to-day crewing, a second is responsible for tracking disruptions and calling in reserves, and a third helps make decisions regarding delays and cancellations.<div type="image" title="An American Airlines flight attendant serving passengers on a 2018 flight." height="3256" width="4884" msid="110342419" hostid="261"></div>The job relies on computer systems and knowledge of specific regulations regarding fatigue and duty time, but American also provides automation tools like HEAT to help schedulers quickly and accurately staff flights.He noted that there are times when things get so displaced that not every flight can be accommodated, so the crew coordinators identify "critical" flights that need to be prioritized for operational needs.For example, if a key plane doesn't make it to its next airport and no replacement can get there either, a chain of disruption could occur.Beyond crew scheduling, nearly half of the IOC floor is dedicated to teams that oversee specific fleets, including sections for the Boeing 737 family, the Airbus A320 family, and widebody jets.These teams consist of flight dispatchers, planners who work with maintenance, and crew coordinators. There are also customer service managers who are "the voice of the passenger" and try to proactively find solutions during disruptions.<div type="image" title="Passengers check in for an American Airlines flights at O'Hare International Airport on October 11, 2022 in Chicago, Illinois." height="3648" width="5472" msid="110342420" hostid="261"></div>Groat also pointed to a relatively new but highly specialized team of irregular operations leads who examine long-term strategies to prevent hourslong delays from impacting flights down the line.For example, the team may consider rerouting specific planes over water to avoid severe weather in Florida or analyze how de-icing delays in Chicago could impact departures, he said."Every flight that we can route around a disruptor is another slot we keep flying," he said.<h2 id="e5e4684a-74bd-450b-9fac-ae099a40819d">Smaller workgroups are still essential to the operation</h2>While crew scheduling and dispatchers make up the IOC's bigger work groups, smaller teams like cargo and maintenance coordinators, load planners, air traffic liaisons, regional dispatchers, and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/teenager-wrong-flight-puerto-rico-instead-of-ohio-2024-1">unaccompanied minor </a>organizers also have roles to fill."When disruption happens, we need to know what cargo is on the airplane that we need to care for, like perishable items, live animals, or pharmaceuticals," Groat said. "Load planners ensure the aircraft are within the right weight and balance."<div type="image" title="American Airlines Embraer ERJ-145 regional jet aircraft in the sky." height="3533" width="5300" msid="110342422" hostid="261"></div>Regional dispatchers coordinate <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/american-regional-pilots-getting-massive-pay-raise-envoy-piedmont-2022-6">American's subsidiary and contract flying</a> and help find replacement planes when the regional side is disrupted. Groups like schools and sports teams are especially harder to re-accommodate<h2 id="1f2382ee-7914-4ad5-a642-0cc8f0a24b4a">A command center is set up for emergency events</h2>The command center is a giant, glass-enclosed room that is designated for incidents and accidents. Groat said it's only been put to use twice since moving into the IOC building in 2015.He said the first use was after the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/2-explosions-reported-at-brussels-airport-2016-3">bomb attack at Brussels Airport in 2016</a>, which didn't impact American directly, but the airline still used the command center as a point of contact to help find where its customers and team members were.<div type="image" title="A model aircraft of an American 787." height="2943" width="3924" msid="110342423" hostid="261"></div>Groat said the second event was the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/boeing-crashes-groundings-timeline-737-max-777-air-force-tanker-2024-1">grounding of the Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft</a> after two crashes killed 346 people in 2018 and 2019."For the Max, we had 24 planes taken out of the system very quickly, and all of them were in Miami," he said. "We needed the means to find replacement aircraft from other parts of the system to restore the schedule there."

See inside American Airlines' massive flight operations center, where it dispatches 6,000 flights every day 

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Home Depot cofounder Arthur Blank's family office is being sued by two private jet flight attendants.</li><li>They say they were overworked, and that Blank's family office "falsified time records."</li></ul>Two private jet flight attendants have sued The Home Depot cofounder <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/arthur-blank-joins-business-leaders-for-harris-cuban-hoffman-2024-10">Arthur M. Blank's</a> family office, alleging they were overworked and not paid overtime.Adele Pearson and Samantha Carlisle allege they were improperly classified as exempt from overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act, in the suit against Blank's family office, AMBFO.The women say in the lawsuit that they worked over 40 hours "nearly every workweek."As well as working on flights, the women say they had to devise menus, pick up catering, and "perform various personal errands for Blank or his family members" — including handling dry cleaning and choosing restaurants or hotels.The lawsuit, which was obtained by Business Insider, was filed on October 18 at the US District Court for the Northern District of Georgia in Atlanta.Blank, who owns the NFL's Atlanta Falcons, is worth $9.3 billion, according to Forbes. Data from JetSpy shows he owns two private jets, a Bombardier Global Express and a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/see-inside-the-75-million-bombardier-global-7500-private-jet-2022-12">Bombardier Global 7500</a>.The lawsuit says that in 2023, Pearson and Carlisle were paid salaries of $160,000 and "approximately $158,000" respectively, and worked 26 days a month for several months.It also says the family office "falsified time records" to suggest the plaintiffs had eight days off. The lawsuit says that on their days off, the two women were "bombarded" by calls and texts about travel planning from Blank's family office.Their workload was increased because they were often required to cover for "inept" coworkers, the lawsuit says.The women allege in the lawsuit that another of the contract flight attendants was in a romantic relationship with Blank and "provided only limited support" because she was scheduled on flights where Blank was the sole passenger.The lawsuit also says the flight operations coordinator was in a romantic relationship with the director of aviation and that she was "unable to perform basic tasks" such as ordering food or booking hotels.Lawyers for the plaintiff accuse AMBFO of one count of unpaid overtime and seek to recover all unpaid overtime, liquidated damages, and legal costs.A spokesperson for AMBFO declined to comment, saying it is company policy not to do so while litigation is pending.

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