[JshWright]

American Airlines once put me in a cab from Baltimore to Philadelphia after my flight out of Baltimore got cancelled (and the only viable alternative flight was later that day in Philly).

Chicago -> Louisville is a little further than Baltimore -> Philly, but it still seems manageable. The only question is, would the crew have been "on the clock" (counting against their hourly limits).

[yardie]

That depends on what on the clock means. My spouse used to work for an airline and they had various clocks.

* 1000hour flight time clock which they couldn't exceed (cosmic radiation or something).

* They had the flight clock which is how they were compensated ie. 14 hour LHR-HKG.

* They had the break clock in flight. So crew could sleep 1-2 hours during a 12-18 hour flight.

* Rapid response standby (15 minute) was a 12 hour standby shift in the terminal.

Because the work times are so extreme cabin crew is given certain latitude in off time. Like, they may work 3 12-hour shifts and then take 3-4 days off.

Everything I've read so far has not been clear about why the crew needed to be there on a flight that was already closed (when the last seat is filled the gate is closed). There were many better options, including driving, that were available. Unloading a passenger is a logistical nightmare and most ground crew are reluctant to do it. It messes up their performance metrics but in an airline like United maybe they just don't care.