U.S. aviation regulators fined Fort Worth-based American Airlines $4.1 million for violating federal laws for leaving passengers on the tarmac too long, with most of the three-hour-plus delays happening at DFW International Airport.
The Department of Transportation investigation that followed the carrier from 2018 to 2021, found that American allowed 43 domestic flights to sit on the tarmac for long periods of time without allowing passengers to get off. It’s the largest fine ever issued for tarmac delay violations, which came along with a cease and desist order, according to the DOT. Of the $4.1 million, $2.05 million will be credited to American for compensation provided to passengers on the affected flights.
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“This is the latest action in our continued drive to enforce the rights of airline passengers,” said Pete Buttigieg, U.S. Transportation Secretary in a statement. “Whether the issue is extreme tarmac delays or problems getting refunds, DOT will continue to protect consumers and hold airlines accountable.”
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Of the 43 flights, which impacted 5,821 travelers, the department found none of the exceptions to tarmac delay rule, which include safety and security exceptions. On one of the 43 flights, passengers weren’t provided food and water. During a tarmac delay, airlines are required to provide travelers with a snack and drinking water no later than two hours after the start of a tarmac delay.
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Sarah Jantz, spokeswoman for American, said the carrier takes its responsibility to comply with all Department of Transportation requirements very seriously.
“While these delays were the result of exceptional weather events, the flights represent a very small number of the 7.7 million flights during this time period,” Jantz said. “We have since apologized to the impacted customers and regret any inconvenience caused.”
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American has adopted some new strategies to cut down on tarmac delays, such as the use of the Hub Efficiency Analytics Tool, or HEAT, to shift arrivals and departures around severe weather, Jantz said. The carrier has also built “smart gating technology” that reduces taxiway congestion and the time aircraft spend waiting for available gates.
The tool uses real-time routing, runway information and other data, along with machine learning, to automatically assign aircraft to the nearest available gate.
According to the Department of Transportation, airlines are required to begin to move the airplane to a location where passengers can get off before three hours for domestic flights and four hours for international flights, for all flights departing from a U.S. airport.