Crandall said people with unused American tickets can receive refunds, and many other airline companies will accept the tickets provided that they have sufficient space on the flights.

But as Thanksgiving approaches, unoccupied seats become harder to find.

Flight attendants said the timing of their strike had nothing to do with the Thanksgiving holiday. Instead, the strike occurred in November because it followed the October 30 contract negotiations.

The new contract not only fails to offer enough compensation, said flight attendants, but also requires minimal staffing on most flights, meaning that there would have to be a larger body of reserve attendants who would have to be available to staff a flight on a moment's notice.

It also extends the maximum amount of time the flight attendants may work to a number larger than the current 14 hours, flight attendants said.

Once the 11 days of the strike have passed, the flight attendants will returnto work, with or without renegotiation. They willreserve the right to strike again.

Crandall said the strike is costing the companyover $10 million per day