United pilots to picket; airline unions press for higher pay

By DAVID KOENIG
AP Airlines Writer

DALLAS (AP) — The peak summer travel season is almost here, and pilots are stepping up their pressure on major airlines for new contracts that will include higher pay. United Airlines pilots plan to walk picket lines at 10 big U.S. airports on Friday and hand out leaflets to travelers. Their protests come right after pilots at American and Southwest voted to authorize strikes. Union officials at United say they might hold a strike vote too. But that doesn’t mean your summer trip will be ruined. Federal law makes it very hard for airline unions to conduct strikes, and gives Congress and the president power to block a strike.