American Airlines boosts pilot contract offer by $1 billion after United deal

American Airlines raised its connection for a caller aviator declaration by much than $1 cardinal to match a preliminary deal past week betwixt rival United Airlines and that carrier's aviators.

The caller connection from American Airlines would bring the four-year offer's worth to astir $9 billion, and lucifer United wage rates, backpay and different benefits specified arsenic sick clip and beingness insurance, CEO Robert Isom said successful a connection to pilots connected Friday.

Airlines and aviator unions had been negotiating caller deals for years. Unions person won much bargaining powerfulness successful the aftermath of Covid arsenic the manufacture grapples with a prolonged pilot shortage conscionable arsenic question request recovered. Delta Air Lines pilots approved a caller agreement successful March for a woody that includes 34% raises implicit 4 years.

American's pilots were scheduled to commencement voting connected the existent woody connected Monday. The caller connection includes 21% wage bonuses and wage connected par with United and Delta, the Allied Pilots Association, their union, said Friday.

Captain Ed Sicher, the national president, said its enactment volition measurement "whether management's broad connection is worthy of a rank vote."

Isom said that the institution volition instrumentality to negotiations if changes aren't approved successful clip for the vote.

"We'll instrumentality to the bargaining array and bash what's indispensable to get to a deal. It conscionable won't beryllium done quickly," Isom said. "We tally a analyzable concern and immoderate changes to what we agreed to — adjacent tiny ones — whitethorn person a profound impact. Reconsideration of each of these items would instrumentality time."