FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) – American Airlines is telling some flight attendants to cut short their leaves of absence and come back to work. The airline said Thursday that it is canceling extended leaves for about 3,300 flight attendants, and it wants them flying by November or December. Plus, the airline expects to hire 800 new flight attendants by next March. It’s the latest indication that leisure travel in the U.S. is booming. American and other airlines encouraged thousands of workers to quit last year, when travel was crushed by the pandemic. But the number of people flying in the U.S. has nearly tripled since early February, leaving the airlines scrambling for staff.
