Shocking footage shows packed American Airlines flight leaving NYC

A shocking video showing a ‘packed’ American Airlines flight departing from New York City has emerged online, as stunned customers claim no safety precautions were carried out by the airline to prevent the spread of coronavirus on board.

Grandmother-to-be Krissy Maloney said she was left aghast yesterday when she arrived at LaGuardia airport in Queens to find the gate of her departing American Airlines flight packed, with fellow passengers bundled together as they waited to board the plane.

Though she says everyone was wearing a face mask, Maloney alleges many passengers had the coverings resting under their chin or just covering their mouths, leaving their noses exposed.

Adding to her woes, she said the situation on board wasn’t much better either. Maloney claims before boarding she was assured that all center seats on the plane would be blocked off for social distancing purposes.

‘Absolutely not the case,’ she later wrote on Facebook. ‘This plane was an Air Bus 321, holds 220 passengers, every single seat on this plane was filled.

‘We flew from NYC, the US epicenter of Corona, no one said anything to anyone about distancing or even to pull your mask from under your chin.’

Maloney claims before boarding the flight she was assured all center seats on the plane would be blocked off for social distancing purposes

Maloney had been flying from New York to South Carolina to be with her pregnant daughter Meg, who is due to give birth.

‘Just beware if you have to fly, the airlines are doing nothing to make anyone feel like air travel could be safe,’ she wrote on Facebook. ‘If my grandson wasn’t coming any time now I would not have flown and if I knew the airline was going to completely lie about taking precautions than I would have driven.’

In a statement to DailyMail.com, American Airlines refuted Maloney’s claims, saying ‘the flight was not full, and not every seat was occupied,’ adding that their COVID-19-induced safety protocol was fully complied with on Maloney’s flight.

The airline said that on all flights through May 31 the number of passengers on board are limited, with 50 percent of the main cabin’s middle seats restricted from use unless ‘necessary’.

‘Gate agents will also continue to reassign seats to create more space between customers or to accommodate families who need to be seated together,’ a statement from the company read.

In reference to Maloney’s claims that ‘220’ passengers were on board, American Airlines said the aircraft in question can actually only hold 187.

The spokesperson declined to provide the specific number of passengers on board the flight when pressed by DailyMail.com.

Maloney had been flying from New York to South Carolina to be with her daughter pregnant daughter Meg, who is due to give birth

In a statement to DailyMail.com, American Airlines refuted Maloney’s claims, saying ‘the flight was not full, and not every seat was occupied,’ adding that their COVID-19-induced safety protocol was fully complied with on Maloney’s flight

Last week, American Airlines released a series of new safety guidelines in response to the on-going coronavirus pandemic. From May 1 all flight attendants were required to wear face coverings on board. That order will be extended to all passengers from May 11

Last week, American Airlines released a series of new safety guidelines in response to the on-going coronavirus pandemic.

From May 1 all flight attendants were required to wear face coverings on board. That order will be extended to all passengers from May 11.

‘The American Airlines team continues to prioritize the safety of our customers and team members, and requiring a face covering is one more way we can protect those on our aircraft,’ said Kurt Stache, Senior Vice President of Customer Experience. ‘We ask customers to bring their own masks or face coverings they’re comfortable with when they travel. American is working to procure face masks and hand sanitizer as a supplement.’

US Airlines are Burning $10 BILLION in Cash Every Month as Demand Plummets

US airlines are collectively burning more than $10 billion in cash a month and averaging fewer than two dozen passengers per domestic flight because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Even after grounding more than 3,000 aircraft, industry trade group Airlines for America said its member carriers, which include the four largest US airlines, were averaging just 17 passengers per domestic flight and 29 passengers per international flight.

‘The U.S. airline industry will emerge from this crisis a mere shadow of what it was just three short months ago,’ the group’s chief executive, Nicholas Calio, said during a prepared testimony at the US Senate on Wednesday.

Net booked passengers have fallen by nearly 100 percent year-on-year, according to the testimony before the Senate Commerce Committee.

The group warned that if air carriers were to refund all tickets, including those purchased as non-refundable or those canceled by a passenger instead of the carrier, ‘this will result in negative cash balances that will lead to bankruptcy.’

US airlines have canceled hundreds of thousands of flights, including 80 percent or more of scheduled flights into June as U.S. passenger traffic has fallen by 95 percent since March. 

 

American also introduced enhanced cleaning procedures on and off board, extending the efforts to ticket counters and waiting areas.

American Airlines’ announcement preceded similar announcements made by Delta Airlines and Frontier earlier this week.

Delta announced their temporary safety changes Tuesday, with the airline taking social distancing measures beyond keeping the middle seats off limits by capping first class sales at 50 percent of capacity and economy class at 60 percent.

The Atlanta-based carrier will be blocking off select window and aisle seats across the next few weeks for aircraft with 1-by-2, 2-by-2 and 2-by-3 seating configurations. The airline has been blocking the sale of the middle seat on all flights since mid-April, except for in first class.

Delta also revealed a number of other measures to expand distancing measures on its full fleet of mainline and regional aircraft, including a new policy requiring all customers to wear face masks and boarding flights from the back to the front.

In accordance with the new measures, from May 4, all Delta Customers and employees will be required to wear masks or face coverings in the check-in lobby, Delta Sky Club, gate areas, jet bridges and on board.

Anyone without a mask will be provided one by Delta staff, the airline said.

Delta also recently began boarding flights from the back of the aircraft to the front to limit the number of passengers passing one another in the aisles.

That measure was first actioned on April 10, however following Tuesday’s announcement, it will stay in place through at least June 30.

A number of other US airlines are revamping their seating arrangements, boarding protocol and aircraft sanitation in an effort to stem the spread of COVID-19 and reassure customers that it’s safe to fly amid the pandemic. Passenger traffic has dropped 95 percent from this time last year, leaving many planes with empty seats.

Delta announced their temporary changes Tuesday, with the airline taking social distancing measures beyond keeping the middle seats off limits by capping first class sales at 50 percent of capacity and economy class at 60 percent

 Hoping to tempt customers back to their ultralow-cost service is Frontier, who added a new product to its extensive menu of in-flight purchase extras: a ‘More Room’ seating option

Hoping to tempt customers back to their ultralow-cost service is Frontier, who added a new product to its extensive menu of in-flight purchase extras: a ‘More Room’ seating option.

The new policy allows customers to buy ‘peace of mind’ and enjoy their flight at a social distance without having the middle seat next to them occupied.

US Airline Coronavirus Safety Measures 

Alaska Airlines: 

Blocking off middle seats on all its large aircraft and the policy is effective through May 31.

American Airlines: 

Blocking off 50 percent of its main cabin middle seats and any seats situated near the flight attendants’ jump seats. The policy is effective through May 31.  

Hawaiian Airlines:

Crew will manually assign seats to ‘increase personal space onboard’ and prevent the booking of middle and adjoining seats. 

JetBlue: 

Not barring middle seats outright, however, flight staff are limiting the number of seats for sale on most aircrafts ‘to provide additional space between individuals who are not traveling together.’

Spirit Airlines:

Middle seats on most of Spirit Airlines’ aircraft will be blocked, according to the company’s website. There is no end date specified.

Southwest Airlines: 

Instead of blocking off middles seats, the number of passengers allowed on board has been capped. Passengers are responsible for picking their own seats and managing their own space needs. The policy began May 2.

United Airlines:

 Passengers are limited from booking middle seats ‘where available.’ Aircraft that have two-seat rows will only allow one passenger to book a seat while the other remains empty. Additional spacing procedures include blocking off seats directly next to the booked seat, whether it be directly in front of a window seat or beside an aisle seat. The policy is in place through May 31.

Famed for their cheap flights and extra costs – ranging from carry-on bags to soft drinks – the ‘More Room’ option is set to cost prospective flyers around $39 and up, depending on the flight.

‘While we believe the best measure to keep everyone healthy is to require face coverings, for those who want an empty seat next to them for extra peace of mind or simply additional comfort, we are now offering “More Room,”’ said Frontier CEO Barry Biffle.

Flights departing from May 8 through August 31 will have 18 More Room seats available for purchase, including ‘Stretch’ seats in the front three rows of the aircraft which provide extra legroom and recline.

When asked by CNBC why the airline didn’t opt to block all middle rows, Frontier CEO Barry Biffle explained that the practice would result in rising airfare.

As a low-cost carrier, Frontline’s aircraft are configured in a high-density format where seats are placed closer together to properly utilize all cabin space. For example, a Frontier Airlines Airbus A321 narrow-body aircraft has only four fewer seats than an American Airlines Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner wide-body jet, SeatGuru reported.

Frontier has taken a number of other measures to ensure the safety of crew and passengers, expanding on its April 13 policy that all crew must wear facemasks and extending the order to passengers as well.

From May 8, all passengers must also complete a form acknowledging that they don’t have any COVID-19 symptoms. Their temperatures will be checked and sanitation efforts will be carried out throughout the flight.

‘We bottomed out a few weeks ago,’ Biffle told the CNBC. ‘To put things in perspective, prior to this, we carried around 80,000 passengers a day and we got down to about 3,000 passengers per day just a few weeks ago. But, I’m really pleased, yesterday and now again today, we’re going to carry over 10,000 passengers.’

Biffle also pushed back against claims the airline is ‘putting a price on safety’, saying that Frontier’s cleaning practises and other policies are already sufficient enough. He said the More Room option is just an added extra for their most worried customers.

‘We don’t believe this is what you need to be safe but it’s one more thing that we can do to put people’s minds at ease,’ the CEO said.

The new policy allows customers to buy a peace of mind and enjoy their flight at a social distance without having the middle seat next to them occupied

US airlines are collectively burning more than $10 billion in cash a month and averaging fewer than two dozen passengers per domestic flight because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Even after grounding more than 3,000 aircraft, or nearly 50 percent of the active US fleet, industry trade group Airlines for America said its member carriers, which include the four largest U.S. airlines, were averaging just 17 passengers per domestic flight and 29 passengers per international flight.

‘The U.S. airline industry will emerge from this crisis a mere shadow of what it was just three short months ago,’ the group’s chief executive, Nicholas Calio, said during a prepared testimony at the US Senate on Wednesday.

Net booked passengers have fallen by nearly 100 percent year-on-year, according to the testimony before the Senate Commerce Committee.

The group warned that if air carriers were to refund all tickets, including those purchased as non-refundable or those canceled by a passenger instead of the carrier, ‘this will result in negative cash balances that will lead to bankruptcy.’

US airlines have canceled hundreds of thousands of flights, including 80 percent or more of scheduled flights into June as U.S. passenger traffic has fallen by 95 percent since March.

Calio said airlines ‘anticipate a long and difficult road ahead. … History has shown that air transport demand has never experienced a V-shaped recovery from a downturn.’

The US Treasury has awarded nearly $25 billion in cash grants to airlines to help them meet payroll costs in exchange for them agreeing not to lay off workers through September 30. Major airlines have warned they will likely need to make additional cuts later this year to respond to a long-term decline in travel demand.

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