Patience is a virtue that’s invaluable when it comes to surviving any airline experience. Whether waiting in line for TSA to sort your things or arriving early for your flight because you accounted for waiting in that long TSA line, an airport is the physical embodiment of the phrase “hurry up and wait.”
Still, spending an hour waiting for your flight in your credit card company’s fancy lounge or even the regular airport terminal is not so bad. Those places have food, comfy seating, and air conditioning. But this summer, passengers waiting aboard major airline planes are experiencing sweltering temperatures -- and people are starting to complain.
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While waiting for planes to board and take off, early-boarding passengers are stuck sitting in unairconditioned cabins until the engines are started. According to documents obtained by Politico, JetBlue Airways (JBLU) -) will allow cabin temperature to reach 85 degrees before action is taken to either cool the plane or wait until the cabin temperature goes down before boarding. American Airlines (AAL) -) reportedly doesn’t take action until the temperature reaches 90 degrees.
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It’s not just customers who are struggling. Flight attendants and pilots are stuck on the aircraft in the heat, too. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told Politico that he thinks “there needs to be a level of comfort and safety in terms of cabin temperature.” He has also said that preventing boarding delays makes it less likely that anyone would experience “an unreasonable period of discomfort or danger.”
This summer’s record heatwaves across the globe have caused estimated billions of dollars. The heat is taking a bite out of several industries, including airlines, thanks to extreme weather damage, high hospital admissions, and other factors. The heat has generally caused more turbulence on flights, and in July, one Delta Airlines (DAL) -) flight from Las Vegas to Atlanta got stuck on the tarmac for more than three hours in 110-degree heat.
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