A group of 18 former student pilots sued Fort Worth-based American Airlines this week, alleging the company misled them and racially discriminated against them while they were enrolled in a flight training program.
The federal lawsuit, filed Tuesday in a federal court in San Diego by a group of plaintiffs who identify as Black, Asian or Latino accused the airlines of offering them fewer training opportunities than their white peers, grading them harsher, subjecting them to derogatory comments, and putting them on remedial tracks that led them to quit the program. That left several plaintiffs in debt, the suit claims.
The suit also accuses the airlines of "reverse redlining" when it targeted minority groups to enroll in a program they were unlikely to complete and three times more likely to be removed or forced to resign compared to white cadets.
"American targeted racial minorities with deceptive and misleading advertising to entice non-white cadets, including Plaintiffs, to take out massive loans to enroll in the AACA—a predatory program with little likelihood of a successful outcome," the suit read.
Triston Sanderson, one of the plaintiffs in the suit, told KERA News he was enrolled in the program from April 2022 until he was dismissed in December 2023.
Sanderson, who is Black, said he wasn't given a reason as to why he was removed from the program or a chance to appeal the decision. Throughout his enrollment, he said he and other minority students didn't receive mentors like their white peers did, were criticized for minor errors, and were scheduled to practice flying during inconvenient times of the day when weather conditions were cloudy.
"I had picked up everything I've known, a secure job, a high-paying secure job as an accountant to pursue the dream of becoming a pilot," Sanderson said. "And here I am, halfway through it, a thousand dollars in debt and I'm being threatened every day of being released or being nixed for minor mistakes my white counterparts were not being nixed for. Is anybody going to believe me when I say there are huge differences between the training that people of color are receiving compared to my white counterpart?"
American Airlines in a statement Wednesday denied the suit's claims.
"We are committed to providing a positive and welcoming experience to everyone who seeks to join our company," the statement read. "We take seriously the concerns raised by this group of former cadets, but we believe the allegations are without merit."
The plaintiffs also allege American made false statements about the American Airlines Cadet Academy, a program the company says can provide a pathway to a pilot career at American Airlines. The suit alleges between 2018 and 2023, the students were not trained as often as promised when signing up for the program and that it took longer to finish than advertised, which none of the plaintiffs completed.
And the suit claims students took out loans from American Airlines Federal Credit Union to pay for the tuition and living expenses — which did not cover the total costs.
"If Plaintiffs had known that they would be training so infrequently, they would never have chosen to take on an enormous amount of debt to attend the AACA," the suit reads.
The suit is seeking $36 million in damages. It's accusing the airline of violating federal and state civil rights laws, racketeering laws, consumer protection laws in both California and Texas, and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act. It accuses the program of defaming and damaging the plaintiffs' future pilot careers.
Sanderson said after being dismissed from the program, he had to take out another loan to finish earning his credentials in a different aviation school.
"I don't think it stopped me from becoming an airline pilot in the future altogether, but it's definitely put a wrench in the road," Sanderson said. "It definitely has created a financial burden on all of us. A lot of these students that are part of this lawsuit have no idea how they're going to continue forward at this point with becoming a pilot."
Penelope Rivera is KERA's breaking news reporter. Got a tip? Email Penelope Rivera at privera@kera.org.
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