Flight Attendants Open Door to a Walkout

Flight attendants for AMR Corp.’s American Airlines rejected binding arbitration for a contract with the carrier, clearing the way for mediators to start a 30-day strike countdown.

The Assn. of Professional Flight Attendants’ directors voted 18-0 to reject National Mediation Board arbitration after an impasse was declared last week, union spokeswoman Leslie Mayo said. The rejection allows a cooling-off period before American’s 23,000 attendants can strike.

The board must set a start date for a countdown that would end within days of the Fourth of July, one of the busiest times of the year for U.S. air travel. Analysts expect either an agreement before the deadline or President Bush to intervene to delay a walkout.

Issues that remain unresolved include compensation, insurance benefits and contract length.

Shares of Fort Worth,-based AMR fell 37 cents to $37.92 on the New York Stock Exchange, before the announcement.