American Airlines to relocate 700 Phoenix flight attendants

PHOENIX – About 700 flight attendants for American Airlines’s Phoenix hub will have to relocate because of upcoming staff reductions at Sky Harbor Airport.

That’s about one-third of American’s attendants in the Valley. The airline confirmed Friday in an email to KTAR News 92.3 FM it was “rebalancing” the base.

A memo to crew members posted on Twitter by the Forward Cabin said, “Our new, integrated flying schedule will require … fewer [flight attendants] in PHX and St. Louis.

“Over the long-term we expect PHX and St. Louis will be about one-third smaller than their current size.” The change affects 75 in St. Louis.

The memo noted there would be no loss of jobs but vacancies at the two bases wouldn’t be filled.

The airline has said the staffing numbers have been out of proportion since merging with Tempe-based US Airways in December 2013. The last US Airways flight — a red eye from San Francisco to Philadelphia — took off Oct. 17, 2015.

American, which flies out of Terminal 4, is the busiest airline at Sky Harbor, serving more than 15 million passengers last year.

Travel website The Points Guy said the staffing issue was unlikely to have an impact on fliers.

A week ago, the airline announced plans to expand nonstop service between Phoenix and London from seasonal to all year beginning March 31.

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