A HOT-BUTTON ISSUE: Record travel on the books, coupled with record heat these summer months, has brought new attention to complaints from pilots, flight attendants and passengers about airlines’ tolerance for cabin temperature thresholds — or lack thereof. Aviation unions say now is the time Washington must act to regulate aircraft cabin temperatures in yet another example of the conflicts that the planet’s warming is creating, your MT host reports. Vague authority: Airlines don’t have to abide by a strict temperature range, in part because there aren’t regulations on the books that explicitly define that, aside from the Transportation Department's saying airlines must keep cabins at a “comfortable” temperature during extended tarmac delays before takeoff or after landing. That rule doesn’t define “comfortable.” Airlines' cooling options have trade-offs, so unions want something consistent, such as requiring airlines to run the air conditioners sooner, or setting an acceptable temperature range for plane cabins from the get-go. “Airlines will only operate when passengers, crew and people on the ground are safe,” said Airlines for America, which represents major domestic airlines. But the unions say heat-related illnesses are an increasing concern. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told POLITICO that his department is monitoring heat trends, too, and taking action in “extreme cases.” But he added that “more routinely, there needs to be a level of comfort and safety in terms of cabin temperature.” Keep it quick: As long as planes are able to take off without an extended delay that leaves planes waiting on the tarmac, cabin temperatures can be quickly rectified, Buttigieg argued. More on that here. NEW HIGHS: At Chicago’s O’Hare airport last week, Buttigieg said Labor Day weekend would cap "what TSA reports is the busiest summer travel period on record — the most air travel passengers that have been screened by TSA in American history." TSA has screened more than 227 million passengers since Memorial Day, according to the agency. Overall, there were fewer canceled flights this summer — and less finger pointing compared with last year, when Buttigieg frequently appeared on cable news to ding airlines. CLOSER TO A STRIKE: Last week, 99.5 percent of American Airlines flight attendants voted to authorize a strike. Their union, the Association of Professional Flight Attendants, is seeking pay raises to counter inflation and what it calls “reasonable contract terms” to wrap up negotiations with the world’s largest carrier that have gone on for more than four years. What the vote means: A strike authorization vote does not mean a strike is imminent. But if the union asks to stop federal mediation — which it initiated back in March — a 30-day cooling-off period would kick in before flight attendants could strike. APFA said 93 percent of the more than 26,000 American flight attendants participated in the vote to authorize a strike. IN MEMORIAM: Former journalist and airline official Philip Stewart died in August at the age of 40. After an award-winning turn as an investigative reporter for WJLA, he became a spokesperson for WMATA and then turned to aviation, his true passion. He spent eight years at JetBlue, then moved to British Airways earlier this year as vice president of corporate affairs. A memorial will be held in New York next weekend.
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