在新冠疫情爆发期间,航空旅行戛然而止,客流量将至冰点,彼时情形在进入喷气机时代以来前所未见。飞机密密麻麻地停放在荒原里。机场空无一人,好似被遗忘的鬼城,不复往日作为交通和商业枢纽的热闹。当时人们十分担心,美国经济里的这个行业可能会崩盘。那是航空业的至暗时期。
今天的航空业重燃生机。每天,有200万美国人收拾好行李,过完安检,登上飞机。美国人携家人度假、参加婚礼,或者终于实现了与亲朋好友一拖再拖的重聚。
没有人会想到,美国航空业的客运量会在几个月内从20世纪50年代的水平飙升至接近2019年的水平。这种恢复速度比经济学家、分析师和行业观察人士预测的要快得多。
在如此短的时间内重启整个行业是前所未有的壮举,而如果没有“薪资支持计划”(Payroll Support Program),这是不可能实现的。新冠疫情期间,美国航空公司加起来每个月要烧掉100亿美元至120亿美元,而且看不到尽头,那时的“薪资支持计划”是航空业的救命稻草。
得益于该项目的实施,美国的航空公司能够继续经营,免于破产。运营商可以让成千上万的员工保住工作、接受培训、获得执照、做好上岗准备。众议院和参议院的民主党和共和党都支持“薪资支持计划”,代表空乘、飞行员和机械师的劳工领袖也支持“薪资支持计划”。根据法律规定,“薪资支持计划”的资金只能用于支付员工工资,而且运营商已经偿还了政府贷款。没有“薪资支持计划”,航空业可能已经不复存在。今天,美国的航线还在继续飞,人们能飞机出行,都要感谢“薪资支持计划”。
这种突然的复苏也带来了挑战。与其他行业一样,航空公司也需要努力适应发生了巨大变化的员工队伍,需要认识到新冠疫情爆发前的人员配备模式已经无法胜任现状。因为新冠肺炎而请假的员工越来越多,能够加班的员工也越来越少,航空公司需要更多随时待命的后备员工。
航空公司的招聘速度很快。他们投资于飞行学院,同时大力开展招聘。上周,美国交通统计局(Bureau of Transportation Statistics)宣布,美国航空公司的就业人数已经达到历史最高水平。截至2022年6月,美国航空运输协会(A4A)的客运航空公司每1000个区块小时配备的飞行员数量比2019年6月增加了10%。
另一边,美国联邦航空管理局(Federal Aviation Authority)也启动了招聘活动,确保有足够的空中交通管制员接受培训,上塔台工作。然而,这个过程没有那么简单。“当联邦航空局面临空管员的人员配备问题时,不是说把经过完全认证的专业管制员从一个塔台安排到另一个塔台那么简单。”美国国家空中交通管制员协会(National Air Traffic Controllers Association)的主席兼首席执行官里奇·桑塔最近表示,“在一个场地获得完全认证的空管人员转岗时,仍然必须接受关于新场地地图、飞机频次、空域、程序和交通方面的培训,而且无法保证这个过程需要多长时间,也无法保证他们能否成功。”
航空公司一直与美国联邦航空管理局保持合作,共同应对包括恶劣天气在内的运营挑战,以便及时调整行程,航空公司能及时与旅客沟通。
航空公司深知与客户沟通的重要性,这也是为什么它们加快加大投资,对移动应用程序等技术进行升级。旅客越来越依赖高科技来办理乘机手续、查阅航司运营动态、追踪行李和自动改签。
美国交通部(Department of Transportation)的部长皮特·布蒂吉格近期表示,航空公司需要按照“现实的”时间表运行,这正是我们正在做的。航司在不断进行运营评估。去年春季,美国航空公司主动调整了时间表,将夏季运力减少了16%,以适应现有的员工配备情况。
航空公司也调整了出行政策以增加灵活性,例如取消改签费或免除旅行积分的使用有效期。自新冠疫情爆发以来,美国航空公司已经支付了210亿美元的现金退款,美国交通部收到的退款投诉一直在稳步下降。
虽然我们知道建立新常态需要时间,但美国的航空公司正在努力恢复服务,改善运营,调整我们的商业模式,以更好地为旅客服务。
从购票到落地的每一个环节,航空公司始终致力于为客户提供最高水平的服务。简而言之,我们希望旅行者拥有安全、无缝、正面的旅行体验——我们每天都在朝着这个目标努力。(财富中文网)
尼古拉斯·E·卡利奥(Nicholas E. Calio)是美国航空运输协会(Airlines for America,简称为A4A)的首席执行官。
Fortune.com发表的评论文章仅代表作者本人观点,不代表《财富》杂志的立场和观点。
译者:Agatha
在新冠疫情爆发期间,航空旅行戛然而止,客流量将至冰点,彼时情形在进入喷气机时代以来前所未见。飞机密密麻麻地停放在荒原里。机场空无一人,好似被遗忘的鬼城,不复往日作为交通和商业枢纽的热闹。当时人们十分担心,美国经济里的这个行业可能会崩盘。那是航空业的至暗时期。
今天的航空业重燃生机。每天,有200万美国人收拾好行李,过完安检,登上飞机。美国人携家人度假、参加婚礼,或者终于实现了与亲朋好友一拖再拖的重聚。
没有人会想到,美国航空业的客运量会在几个月内从20世纪50年代的水平飙升至接近2019年的水平。这种恢复速度比经济学家、分析师和行业观察人士预测的要快得多。
在如此短的时间内重启整个行业是前所未有的壮举,而如果没有“薪资支持计划”(Payroll Support Program),这是不可能实现的。新冠疫情期间,美国航空公司加起来每个月要烧掉100亿美元至120亿美元,而且看不到尽头,那时的“薪资支持计划”是航空业的救命稻草。
得益于该项目的实施,美国的航空公司能够继续经营,免于破产。运营商可以让成千上万的员工保住工作、接受培训、获得执照、做好上岗准备。众议院和参议院的民主党和共和党都支持“薪资支持计划”,代表空乘、飞行员和机械师的劳工领袖也支持“薪资支持计划”。根据法律规定,“薪资支持计划”的资金只能用于支付员工工资,而且运营商已经偿还了政府贷款。没有“薪资支持计划”,航空业可能已经不复存在。今天,美国的航线还在继续飞,人们能飞机出行,都要感谢“薪资支持计划”。
这种突然的复苏也带来了挑战。与其他行业一样,航空公司也需要努力适应发生了巨大变化的员工队伍,需要认识到新冠疫情爆发前的人员配备模式已经无法胜任现状。因为新冠肺炎而请假的员工越来越多,能够加班的员工也越来越少,航空公司需要更多随时待命的后备员工。
航空公司的招聘速度很快。他们投资于飞行学院,同时大力开展招聘。上周,美国交通统计局(Bureau of Transportation Statistics)宣布,美国航空公司的就业人数已经达到历史最高水平。截至2022年6月,美国航空运输协会(A4A)的客运航空公司每1000个区块小时配备的飞行员数量比2019年6月增加了10%。
另一边,美国联邦航空管理局(Federal Aviation Authority)也启动了招聘活动,确保有足够的空中交通管制员接受培训,上塔台工作。然而,这个过程没有那么简单。“当联邦航空局面临空管员的人员配备问题时,不是说把经过完全认证的专业管制员从一个塔台安排到另一个塔台那么简单。”美国国家空中交通管制员协会(National Air Traffic Controllers Association)的主席兼首席执行官里奇·桑塔最近表示,“在一个场地获得完全认证的空管人员转岗时,仍然必须接受关于新场地地图、飞机频次、空域、程序和交通方面的培训,而且无法保证这个过程需要多长时间,也无法保证他们能否成功。”
航空公司一直与美国联邦航空管理局保持合作,共同应对包括恶劣天气在内的运营挑战,以便及时调整行程,航空公司能及时与旅客沟通。
航空公司深知与客户沟通的重要性,这也是为什么它们加快加大投资,对移动应用程序等技术进行升级。旅客越来越依赖高科技来办理乘机手续、查阅航司运营动态、追踪行李和自动改签。
美国交通部(Department of Transportation)的部长皮特·布蒂吉格近期表示,航空公司需要按照“现实的”时间表运行,这正是我们正在做的。航司在不断进行运营评估。去年春季,美国航空公司主动调整了时间表,将夏季运力减少了16%,以适应现有的员工配备情况。
航空公司也调整了出行政策以增加灵活性,例如取消改签费或免除旅行积分的使用有效期。自新冠疫情爆发以来,美国航空公司已经支付了210亿美元的现金退款,美国交通部收到的退款投诉一直在稳步下降。
虽然我们知道建立新常态需要时间,但美国的航空公司正在努力恢复服务,改善运营,调整我们的商业模式,以更好地为旅客服务。
从购票到落地的每一个环节,航空公司始终致力于为客户提供最高水平的服务。简而言之,我们希望旅行者拥有安全、无缝、正面的旅行体验——我们每天都在朝着这个目标努力。(财富中文网)
尼古拉斯·E·卡利奥(Nicholas E. Calio)是美国航空运输协会(Airlines for America,简称为A4A)的首席执行官。
Fortune.com发表的评论文章仅代表作者本人观点,不代表《财富》杂志的立场和观点。
译者:Agatha
During the pandemic, air travel came to a screeching halt, plummeting to levels not seen since the dawn of the jet age. Airplanes were parked wing to wing in the desert. Airports were left empty, like forgotten ghost towns, not resembling hubs of transportation and commerce. There was widespread fear that this sector of the U.S. economy could collapse. These were dire times for the airline industry.
Today, airline travel is booming. Every day, 2 million people pack their bags, clear security, and board airplanes in the U.S. Americans are taking family vacations, attending weddings, and heading to long-postponed reunions with their loved ones.
Nobody could have anticipated that the U.S. airline industry would see passenger volumes skyrocket from 1950s levels to close to 2019 levels in a matter of months. This recovery has been much faster than economists, analysts, and industry observers had predicted.
Relaunching an entire industry in such a short period of time is an unprecedented feat–and it would not have been possible without the Payroll Support Program (PSP). PSP was a lifeline for the industry at a time when U.S. airlines were collectively burning $10-12 billion each month, with no end in sight.
The program ensured U.S. airlines were able to stay in business and avoid bankruptcy. Carriers were able to keep hundreds of thousands of employees on the job, trained, licensed, and ready to go. Democrats and Republicans–in the House and Senate–supported PSP, as did labor leaders representing flight attendants, pilots, and mechanics. The PSP funds went only to the paychecks of employees, as stipulated by law, and carriers have paid back the government loans. Without PSP, we may not have an airline industry in this country at all. Today, U.S. airlines are flying and people are traveling thanks to PSP.
The sudden resurgence has come with challenges. Like other industries, airlines are navigating a dramatically changed workforce and learning that pre-pandemic staffing models simply no longer work. There are more employee absences due to COVID-19 and fewer employees are able to work overtime. Therefore, airlines need more on-call reserve employees.
Airlines are hiring at a rapid pace. They are investing in flight academies and have launched employment campaigns. Last week, the Bureau of Transportation Statistics announced that U.S. airline employment has reached an all-time high. As of June 2022, A4A passenger carriers were staffed with 10% more pilots per 1,000 block hours than they were in June 2019.
For their part, the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) has launched a hiring campaign to help ensure an adequate number of air traffic controllers are trained and in towers. However, it’s not a simple process. “As we face controller staffing challenges in the FAA, it’s not as simple as moving fully certified professional controllers from one facility to another,” National Air Traffic Controllers Association President and CEO Rich Santa recently said. “Controllers who are fully certified in one facility must still train on the maps, frequencies, airspace, procedures, and traffic at their new facility and there is no guarantee of how long it will take or that they will be successful.”
Airlines constantly collaborate with the FAA to address shared operational challenges, including inclement weather, so schedules can be adjusted, and carriers can communicate with travelers.
Our airlines understand the importance of communicating with customers, which is why they have expedited significant investments in upgrades to technologies, including mobile apps. And travelers are increasingly relying on technology for check-in, operational updates, baggage tracking, and automatic rebooking.
Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg recently said that airlines need to operate “realistic” schedules, and that is exactly what we are doing. Carriers are constantly evaluating their operations. Last spring, U.S. airlines proactively adjusted their schedules and reduced summer capacity by 16% to accommodate staffing realities.
Airlines have also adjusted travel policies to increase flexibility such as eliminating change fees or waiving expiration dates on travel credits. U.S. carriers have issued $21 billion in cash refunds since the onset of the pandemic, and refund complaints to the Department of Transportation (DOT) have been steadily declining.
While we recognize that it will take time to establish a new normal, U.S. airlines are committed to restoring service, improving operations, and adjusting our business models to better serve the traveling public.
Airlines always strive to provide the highest levels of customer service from ticket purchase to touchdown. Simply put, we want travelers to have a safe, seamless, and positive travel experience–and we won’t stop working toward that goal every day.
Nicholas E. Calio is the president and CEO of Airlines for America (A4A).
The opinions expressed in Fortune.com commentary pieces are solely the views of their authors and do not reflect the opinions and beliefs of Fortune.