CHARLOTTE, N.C. --
US Airways has sued its pilots union, alleging a coordinated work slowdown that's leaving passengers stranded at an alarming rate.
The airline is seeking an injunction directing the union to tell pilots not to engage in a slowdown campaign.
More than 600 US Airways flights leave Charlotte-Douglas every day. But in recent months, the airline alleges pilots have been intentionally delaying flights as part of a negotiating tactic for a new contract.
"It's another reason why you wouldn't fly US Airways, or at least try to fly someone else instead," said Mike Desrosiers, an US Airways passenger.
Peter Greenberg is a national travel expert, author, and radio host. He told Eyewitness News the labor dispute will likely impact travelers because of how flight crews will be scheduled.
"In the short term, it comes down to scheduling, and the smart travelers will do this: Only fly out of the very first flight of the day. Because by about the fifth flight of the day, that's when they'll have problems fielding crews," Greenberg said.
Desrosiers said he plans on following that advice until the lawsuit is settled.
"In light of this, I would definitely not try to fly out like I am tonight at 10 o'clock at night. I would definitely try to fly out early and give myself some room," he said.
Eyewitness News read through the lawsuit, and it pointed out two statistics the airline claims is evidence of a coordinated slowdown.
US Airways said since May 1, the percentage of on-time flights flown by pilots in Charlotte and Philadelphia has declined 11 percent, and the percentage of passengers' bags that miss their connecting flights has increased 45 percent.
"It seems like often it's the innocent person just trying to get home, or trying to fly for business, that's getting squeezed all the time. It does get frustrating," Desrosiers said.
The US Airline Pilots Association released a statement Saturday evening saying, "Any accusation of illegal job activity is categorically false. In fact, quite some time ago we posted a message to our pilots advising them that it is not the union’s policy to engage in any sort of illegal job activity."
Eyewitness News asked US Airways for an interview, but a spokeswoman said the lawsuit speaks for itself. She declined the request for an on-camera interview.
The lawsuit was filed Friday in federal court in Charlotte.
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