This story is from April 6, 2020

Single passenger flights: Woes of airlines & crew

Single passenger flights: Woes of airlines & crew
A crew member waits for the departure of a one-passenger flight between Washington and New Orleans on Friday
When Reuters photographer Carlos Barria boarded American Airlines flight 4511 from Washington Reagan National Airport to New Orleans on Friday for an assignment, he was the only passenger on the 76-seat jet. “There were some awkward moments,” Barria said.
Like when the gate agent announced a formal boarding process only to remember that Barria was the sole passenger who would board, or when the pilot approached his seat to personally explain a delay in take-off due to a mechanical issue, rather than speak over the PA system.

The two flight attendants invited Barria to sit in a firstclass seat and went through the safety demonstration for Barria alone. “I felt I had to pay attention,” he said.
Nearly vacant flights have become the norm for US airlines, despite a drastic reduction in the number of planes they put in the air each day as passenger traffic has diminished in the midst of the coronavirus outbreak.
American Airlines Group Inc flew 119 flights out of Washington Reagan National on Friday; eight of those departures had only one passenger and many had just a handful, an American official said. On the same day last year, American operated 254 flights out of the same airport.
The US Transportation Security Administration screened 1,29,763 travellers on Friday versus over 2 million on the same day a year ago, according to data on its website. US airlines, who say they are burning through cash every day, have applied for government aid meant to help them meet payroll .

Flight attendants continue to do their jobs, despite some saying that they fear contracting the virus and infecting at-risk family at home. One of the flight attendants on Barria’s flight said she would be flying from New Orleans to her hometown Miami, where she was due to take her father for a cancer treatment after her four-day trip that included sleeping in hotels.
“Our elected officials want us to continue to provide safe air travel through this crisis… We need to continue flying as requested and serving those that need to travel,” American CEO Doug Parker said last week.
In an effort to protect passengers and crew, airlines have scaled back beverage and snack servicesand have allowed flight attendants to wear gloves.
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