Spirit cancelled flights, and their customers went a bit wild in the Fort Lauderdale airport. One woman says Spirit cancelled three flights in four days, and she's having trouble getting home. Customers were fighting, and some were arrested.

Spirit blames pilots, who won't take certain assignments. They have sued the Airline Pilots Association for what they're calling a work slowdown, which has caused 300 flight cancellations and affected about 20,000 customers.

In a statement, Spirit spokesperson said the company was "shocked and saddened" to see the airport chaos and said, "These pilots have put their quest for a new contract ahead of getting customers to their destinations and the safety of their fellow Spirit Team Members."

Pilots say they are working without a contract and are seeking pay increases. They deny causing a slowdown and said, "Rather, ALPA and the Spirit pilots are continuing to do everything possible to help restore the company's operations, which have experienced significant problems over the past several days."

Image source.

Discussion:

• Analyze responsibilities in this situation: airline management, the pilots, the pilot union, and customers. How could this situation have been prevented?
• How's your view of the airline's communications so far? How can they be improved?