Flying Allegiant Air has become a matter of survival as far as its flight attendants are concerned.
Route suspensions in seven of the nine markets that fly to Hawaii, aircraft mechanical delays that have stretched as long as 52 hours, and two years of union contract talks without a resolution have prompted the Transport Workers Union, which represents more than 600 flight attendants at Allegiant, to put together an Allegiant Delay Survival Kit.
Each kit includes sunglasses, a notepad and pen, a souvenir T-shirt, 52-hour playing cards, an all-day airplane lollipop "and a lei — for your de-lei." It even includes a preaddressed postcard for passengers to send to Allegiant CEO Maurice Gallagher Jr. to let him know how late their flight was in arriving.
The shirt includes a message on the front that reads: "I flew Allegiant to Hawaii and all I got was … a lousy 52-hour delay."
On the back of the shirt is a website, WillAllegiantBeThere.org.
In March, more than 1,700 Allegiant passengers traveling between Honolulu and the mainland were delayed as much as 52 hours because of airplane mechanical problems that stretched over a four-day period.
"We’re passing out the kits in some of the markets flying to Honolulu," said TWU spokesman Jamie Horwitz, adding that the kits are distributed in and around airports by volunteers, other TWU members and off-duty Allegiant flight attendants.
"It’s done periodically. We developed these materials as part of this campaign to make Allegiant more accountable. We think the airline has a lot of potential, but we think they could do things better for their workers and their passengers."
Allegiant spokeswoman Jessica Wheeler said the union would be better off negotiating.
"The TWU is welcome to spend their resources however they think is effective," she said.
"We personally think our time and energy is better spent attacking the issues in mediation and not attacking one another."
Despite the delays and the route suspensions, Allegiant has had no problem turning a profit.
On Wednesday, Allegiant posted its 41st consecutive profitable quarter as earnings jumped 47.1 percent to $31.9 million from $21.7 million a year ago, and revenue rose 14.8 percent to $273 million from $237.9 million.
"The month of March is typically our busiest month of the year, and this year was no different," Gallagher said.
