American Airlines Union Joins Opposition to Spirit's Google Data Deal

The Allied Pilots Association (APA), which represents American Airlines pilots, has joined the opposition to Spirit Airlines' plan to sell its data to Google. The APA filed an objection to the sale on Tuesday, stating that more than 700 of its members formerly worked at Spirit and would be affected by the data sale.

The proposed sale includes Spirit's internal data and custom software, but not customer or credit card information. However, the APA is concerned that the crew members' 'confidential employment and training related information' will be disclosed as part of the sale.

The union is calling for the court to reject the proposed sale until concerns over the crew members' data are 'satisfactorily addressed.' This joining of forces with other unions, including the Air Line Pilots Association, which represents Spirit pilots, and the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, which represents Spirit flight attendants.

Google has said that the sale will include scrubbing of any identifying information from the data. However, the APA is still concerned about the potential impact on aviation safety and training programs.