Hundreds of American Airlines customers today discovered they might have to stay home for the holidays, thanks to an error in American Airlines’ computer system.
According to Bloomberg, the glitch showed that some flights had a surplus of staff when they didn’t. As a result, the airline gave too many pilots the holiday season off, leaving up to 15,000 flights between December 17-31 critically understaffed.
An American Airlines spokesperson told Bloomberg the company has corrected the error which led to the scheduling problem. The company is now offering 150 percent hourly wage to pilots who agree to work during the vacation time they were accidentally given.
While it sounds like a neat solution, the Allied Pilots Association — the union representing the pilots — is pushing back to look for something that doesn’t allegedly violate its contract. The company will also have to rebuild its schedule, which sounds like a nasty prospect right before the season begins.
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In a statement to The Verge, American Airlines said, “We will work with the APA to take care of our pilots and ensure we get our customers to where they need to go over the holidays.”
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