United Airlines asks pilots to take voluntary unpaid leave, cites delays in Boeing deliveries
NY Post
United Airlines is asking its pilots to take voluntary unpaid leave next month because of delays in Boeing deliveries, according to a memo sent to pilots.
Because of an anticipated shortage of airplanes, “our forecasted block hours for 2024 have been reduced and we are offering our pilots voluntary programs for the month of May to reduce excess staffing,” United said in a statement to The Post.
Block hours — the key industry measure for aircraft use — include the time from the moment the aircraft door closes at departure to the moment the plane’s door opens again at arrival on a given flight.
The voluntary pilot leave programs could possibly extend into summer and fall. It wasn’t immediately clear what incentives, if any, United was giving pilots to take a month-long leave from work.
“We don’t have any further specifics to share at this time,” a United spokesperson said.
This overstaffing issue is just the latest sign of how the fuselage blowout that occurred on an Alaska Airlines-operated Boeing 737 MAX 9 jet at 16,000 feet earlier this year is affecting United’s growth plans.
