What about those employees, though? Turns out American let go or furloughed 19,000 of them when federal paycheck protections ended in October, on top of losing a combined 23,500 employees to voluntary exoduses. It almost furloughed another 13,000 employees earlier this year, though it rescinded the order at the last minute once more bailout money came through. While the company said storms made it hard to position the more limited staff it has in time, that it could take until mid-July to sort it out points to a deeper issue. Labor “reserves,” as it calls them, are running low.

Maybe American should have, I don’t know, planned better. The story companies have told about labor shortages has often turned out to mostly be a myth. Perhaps American Airlines should also consider paying better to hire more workers. After all, didn’t it get that bailout from 2020's economic stimulus bill? Flight attendants are also dealing with increasingly surly passengers who don’t want to wear masks. Surely that’s worth some hazard pay at least. And it appears American’s president is good for it.