900 More Flights Cancelled Today American Airlines

[Parche]

CNN) -- American Airlines canceled more than 900 flights Thursday as it continues to perform safety inspections on certain jets.


Crowds of passengers wait in line at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago on Wednesday.

It's the third consecutive day of cancellations for American Airlines, which has apologized to customers and offered to make amends with refunds, vouchers, and compensation for overnight stays.

American also canceled several hundred flights for the same reason about two weeks ago.

Roger Frizzell, an airline spokesman, said the inspections involve technical compliance as opposed to flight safety. Watch how air travelers deal with disruptions »

Alaska Airlines said it had canceled 11 flights on Thursday for safety checks. Midwest Airlines canceled at least 10 Thursday flights, a spokesman told The Associated Press.

Delta, Southwest, and United Airlines also have canceled a number of flights in recent weeks for safety checks.

American Airlines canceled 1,094 flights on Wednesday -- 43 percent of its total daily flights -- and 460 flights the day before, the company said in a statement. The flights were scrapped so inspectors could make sure the airline complied with a federal directive relating to how wires should be bundled in the wheel well of MD-80 jets, the company said.

"We apologize for the inconvenience this has caused our customers," Chief Executive Gerard Arpey said in a statement. "American will do whatever it takes to assist those affected by these flight changes, and our employees are working hard to ensure that we remain their choice for air travel."


American Airlines: Flight status
Inspectors had checked 179 of the 300 MD-80s in American's fleet by Wednesday afternoon, the company said. It said 60 of the 179 returned to service while 119 were "still undergoing work."

Passengers scheduled to fly on an American Airlines MD-80 between Tuesday and Friday can receive a full refund or apply the value of their ticket to a future flight, the airline said. People who stayed overnight as a result of a canceled flight can contact the company's Web site to inquire about receiving compensation.


The cancellations Wednesday caused long lines in several airports.

Representatives at Chicago O'Hare International Airport said they were doing all they can to "assist passengers affected by the American Airlines cancellations." At Dallas Forth Worth International Airport, representatives provided "cots, baby formula and all-night eateries." E-mail to a friend

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All flights in and out of PDX are cancelled by American
5 to DFW and 2 to ORD

:hi:

[Manifestor_of_Light]

1. It is possible to SUE THE BASTARDS?????????

Just wondering since the American public has been fucked over royally for years and it's just getting worse.

[BlueCollar]

2. on what grounds?

[Sannum]

3. I have an idea.

They are going to lose a lot of money. Let's have the government bail them out again, even though the problem was caused by their own irresponsibility. Screw the people...All hail the corporations!

Mr. Garrison was right. There is only one way to fly, and it is much less painful.

[Deja Q]

4. Are they getting offshored parts, illegal laborers, what the heck?

At least it puts danger out of peoples' lives, not to mention saving on gas money.

[trof]

5. Another perspective:

Got this in an email this morning.

American Airlines MD80 wiring issue

This is a photo of the wiring bundle that has grounded so many AA flight the past several days. The FAA came out with a maintenance directive over a year ago that stated the wire ties must be one inch apart. The AA maintenance managers determined that our MD80's were close enough to 1 inch as shown in the photo and did not change the spacing of the wire ties.

Some MD80 did come from the factory with wire ties spaced 4-8 inches apart and that prompted the FAA directive that warned of possible chaffing and a potential fire hazard. The deadline to comply with this directive was last week.

The FAA says no way to the above spacing and grounded our entire MD80 fleet.

We operate over 300 MD80's and have canceled 700-1000 flights a day!

The FAA was really beat up in a congressional hearing last week by several FAA inspectors who told congress that they were forced by their supervisors to ignore discrepancies they found on Southwest Airlines B737's. The inspectors were from the same regional office that inspects American Airlines and so now the FAA is proving that NOTHING will get by their inspectors.

So, the FAA inspectors are grounding planes that have spacing of anything more than +/- .125!!!

I honestly do not think this is a safety issue but simply revenge from the FAA from being so embarrassed on Capital Hill. There is just no way that the spacing of the wire ties in the above photo would be more of a fire hazard than wire ties spaces 1' apart but................