Most of the time when I fly it's on Southwest Airlines. I have the Southwest credit card, and I earn points for free flights, so this news made me a little nervous.
The Southwest Airlines Pilots Association wrote an open letter to the executives of the airline stating that the crew members are exhausted. In fact they say fatigue among crew members is the "number-one safety threat" for the airline, and it’s on the rise!
Late last year, the union saw a 600-percent spike in fatigue reports, and they noted "another staggering 330-percent increase" just in the last month.
Right now the union is negotiating with the company for new contracts for the pilots, and they say there is a lot of pressure to work overtime due to poor scheduling. The pilots also complain they don’t get enough time to rest between flights.
And this problem isn’t just isolated to Southwest, pilots at Delta Airlines are also reportedly tired and working "longer days with shorter nights at home."
That’s not good news! Especially as we head into the busy Summer travel season! I hope executives pay attention to this warning!
Photo: Getty Images