• Specific FMLA entitlements apply to eligible airline flight crew members.

Airline flight crew employee: An airline flight crewmember or flight attendant as those terms are defined in regulations of the Federal Aviation Administration.

Eligible airline flight crew employees are entitled to up to 72 days of Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave during any 12-month period for the same reasons that other employees would be entitled to up to 12 weeks of leave. The same qualifying reasons apply:

• The birth of a child or placement of a child for adoption or foster care;
• To care for the employee’s spouse, son, daughter, or parent with a serious health condition;
• For the employee’s own serious health condition; or
• For any qualifying exigency arising out of the fact that a spouse, son, daughter, or parent is a military member on covered active duty.

The 72-day entitlement is based on a uniform six-day workweek for all flight crew employees, regardless of the time actually worked or paid. This is multiplied by 12 weeks. For example, if Amy took five weeks of FMLA leave, she would use 30 days (6 days x 5 weeks) of her 72-day entitlement; her schedule is notwithstanding.

Eligible airline flight crew employees are entitled to up to 156 days of military caregiver leave during a single 12-month period to care for a covered servicemember. This 156-day entitlement is based on the uniform six-day workweek multiplied by the 26-workweek entitlement for military caregiver leave.