Airline pilots seek vaccine priority

The largest union of U.S. airline pilots is asking the government to give cockpit crews preference for receiving the coronavirus vaccine to ensure its shipment by air cargo isn’t interrupted. Cargo-airline pilots “have experienced an alarming increase in Covid-19 exposure and infections,” Joseph DePete, president of the Air Line Pilots Association, said in a letter to Senate lawmakers dated Wednesday.

Congress and the administration should recognize pilots as a critical link in the supply chain, DePete said. As part of that, they should receive the vaccine after its initial distribution to health care workers and some elderly, he said.