It's six.
This is the CBS Sunday Night News.
Bill Platt reporting.
Good evening.
Thanksgiving week has begun with no progress in the standoff between American Airlines
and its striking flight attendants union, making it very likely that normally heavy
travel at this time of year could become a nightmare.
Vicki Mabry is covering the story in Dallas.
Failing to strike a lose lose proposition for everyone except its competitors, American
CEO Robert Crandall apologized to passengers but continues taking a hard line with striking
flight attendants.
We cannot simply give in to a union which has proposed to us a contract that would cost
our company $500 million a year in additional expenses.
Today the flight attendants union sent a letter to national mediators asking for a presidential
emergency board to settle the dispute.
We believe the national mediation board and President Clinton will give our offer to submit
to a presidential emergency board far greater consideration than Mr. Crandall.
Emergency mediation would get flight attendants off the picket line and back on board aircraft
immediately but Crandall rejected the proposal.
I also share your enthusiasm for an early solution but I do not think a presidential
emergency board is the right answer.
Instead I suggest you suspend your strike which will put our valued customers back on
our airplane.
Crandall also announced the company is downsizing cutting 4,000 jobs when the planned 11 day
strike is over and he says one third of the scheduled flights should take off with passengers
during the busy Thanksgiving holiday.
In the meantime the mediation board has received the flight attendance letter and says it will
begin reviewing it tomorrow.
Nikki Mavrie, CBS News, Dallas.
With almost two thirds of Americans flights likely to be canceled this week, reporter
Linda Tyra found a number of people already having trouble getting where they want to
go.
For many passengers holding American tickets the week is already getting off to a rough
start.
I understand the dispute with the airline and their employees but it's very sad to
inconvenience so many people.
Many travelers are scrambling for seats on other airlines.
I was initially supposed to be on Northwest and then I got reticketed for Delta and United.
It's only a matter of 24 hours I got to get there and get back.
As it gets closer to Thanksgiving many passengers face the growing prospect of getting to their
destinations late or not getting there at all.
Travel agents like Nick Gold are swamped.
He's had to rebook 130 customers who had reservations on American.
It took me about two and a half hours just to re-protect nine people based on the availability
that was left.
Some people are switching to trains but even those seats are going fast.
We hope that American Airlines passengers don't try to come in at the last minute and
try to get a seat because they're probably not going to be able to get one.
For those passengers who must stick to flying other carriers will honor American tickets
if seats are available and that's the big if during the busiest travel week of the year.
Linda Tyra, CBS News, New York.
The Senate Ethics Committee is expected to go to court tomorrow to get Oregon Senator
Bob Packwood's diaries.
Packwood had decided to resign last week according to Wyoming Senator Alan Simpson but changed
his mind after the Justice Department also requested his diaries.
Still ahead on the CBS Sunday Night News, America remembers John F. Kennedy.
The rest burdens heavier than it rested on the shoulders of any president.
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