By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON (Reuters] – U.S. airline executives will be present at a Senate oversight hearing on this issue, an aviation trade association said on Friday. Senators are expected to question the airlines about their use of federal pandemic aid and staffing concerns, among other topics.

The Senate Commerce Committee invites seven top executives of major U.S. airlines as witnesses at its Dec. 15 hearing.

Airlines for America (A4A), which is an industry trade organization, claimed in a statement that the “U.S. Airlines Look Forward to Participating” but failed to specify whether or not the CEOs would be testifying, as asked by Democratic Senator Maria Cantwell.

Cantwell hosted the Chief Executive Officers of American Airlines, Delta Air Lines (NYSE :), Southwest Airlines and Southwest Airlines. Spirit Airlines (NYSE:) To appear, Reuters reported this Week.

A4A reported that carriers are looking forward to continuing their collaboration with Cantwell’s and Senator Roger Wicker (the top Republican on the committee), “on the problems facing the U.S. airlines industry.”

Cantwell stated that he encouraged them to turn up, speaking on Wednesday at Reuters about the CEOs. It is bad faith to not show up. … It is time for the public to get some answers.”

Cantwell said that they would continue to oversee the company’s finances because it was expensive. Officials stated that many CEOs were expected to attend the hearing and participate in A4A meetings.

Reduced business travel and reduced tourist numbers caused by the COVID-19 pandemic were a major problem for U.S. and international airlines. In response to the pandemic, Congress authorized three rounds in taxpayer bailouts of $54 billion starting March 2020. These were used to pay a significant portion of U.S. Airlines’ payroll costs until Sept. 30, 2019.

The lawmakers would like to find out if airlines offered voluntary employee buyouts, even though they receive payroll assistance. This could have led to the cancellation of hundreds upon hundreds of flights over recent months.

Separately, the leaders of the U.S House of Representatives Transportation Committee have requested that A4A answer any questions regarding the federal payroll assistance received by the carriers.

Democratic Representative Peter DeFazio (the chairman of the committee) and Representative Sam Graves (the panel’s top Republican), asked A4A questions regarding staffing cuts despite taxpayer assistance.

DeFazio, Graves and a joint letter were made public on Thursday night. The letters noted questions about recent disruptions at the two largest U.S. carrier carriers and asked whether this is due to a “lack of workers in key operation areas”.

The congressmen stated that they expected airlines to use all available resources to alleviate short-staffing problems and address long-term workforce shortages.

American Airlines and Southwest Airlines both experienced major problems in recent months that resulted in hundreds of flight cancellations.

A4A reported that COVID-19 helped to reduce air travel demand up to 96% during the first stages of the pandemic.

According to the group, “The airline industry was struggling to survive, so the aid program was essential to ensure that U.S. employees could continue to deliver critical services.”

The Federal Support was not involved in the operational disruptions experienced by some carriers, it said.

Involuntary layoffs and reductions in pay were prohibited for airlines that receive government aid. A restriction on executive compensation was also required. They were to halt dividend and share buyback payments and limit executive compensation.