Delta Air Lines flight disruptions and staff shortages are severely impacting not just the passengers’ travel plans but employee morale too. Delta pilots have detailed their frustrations in not one but two letters recently, one to the board of directions and the other addressed to the customers.

No-confidence letter

Delta Air Lines pilots voiced their struggles and frustrations in a letter to the carrier’s board of directors earlier this month, explaining their waning confidence in the management to contain the present operational chaos. Written by Delta MEC, the unit of the Air Line Pilots Association that represents Delta’s 13,800 pilots, the letter states,

“We have lost confidence in Delta Flight Operations, Crew Resources and Flight Training and Standards; and we are concerned for the long-term health of Delta Air Lines. Delta’s operational reliability and outstanding reputation is suffering … As the economy continues to recover, we question the trajectory of our airline and are very concerned about the integrity and safety of our operation.”

This was written a day before Delta’s pilots picketed outside of a June 16 shareholders meeting to call for flight reduction according to the number of pilots it currently employs.

Overworked pilots

In a separate open letter to customers, the pilots have explained their challenging working hours in the face of severe staff shortage. They also said that they were disheartened by witnessing the impact of passengers’ travel plans and that they were going well beyond normal working conditions to operate as many flights as possible, adding,

“We have been working on our days off, flying a record amount of overtime to help you get to your destination. At the current rate, by this fall, our pilots will have flown more overtime in 2022 than in the entirety of 2018 and 2019 combined, our busiest years to date.”

Delta MEC chairman Captain Jason Ambrosi said that these unprecedented conditions have forced the union to publish an open letter to the public for the first time in history. He added that Delta pilots take great pride in getting passengers to their destinations safely and on time, but it has been disheartening to see customers waiting in long lines to rebook flights due to scheduling issues that could have been prevented.

Chaotic times

With Covid-related travel restrictions being lifted, demand for air travel has returned robustly this summer, and the skies are getting busier by the week. Throughout the pandemic, a massive number of employees left the industry, and now, airlines and airports across the US are struggling to replace those who left the workforce.

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Last month Delta announced that it would cancel 100 flights a day in July and August to prevent major summer travel disruptions. The Atlanta-based carrier was also plagued by flight disruptions over the Memorial Day weekend.

With no immediate solution in sight, it seems the industry will take some time to resolve staffing issues.

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