American Airlines

American Airlines, Inc. (AA), known simply as American, is an American airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. It operates scheduled flights on an extensive network of domestic and international routes in North America, the Caribbean, Central America, South America, Europe, Asia and Oceania. Its route network revolves around its nine hubs in Dallas-Fort Worth, New York, Charlotte, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Phoenix, Miami and Chicago. Their main maintenance base is in Tulsa.

American Airlines was a founder of the Oneworld global alliance in 1999, and coordinates fares, services and schedules with British Airways, Finnair and Iberia in the transatlantic market and with Japan Airlines and Qantas in the transpacific market. Envoy Air, SkyWest, Inc., SkyWest Airlines, and ExpressJet Airlines operate regional flights for the airline under the American Eagle brand.

American Airlines' former parent company, AMR Corporation, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November 2011, and in February 2013 announced plans to merge with US Airways Group, to create the largest airline AMR and US Airways Group completed the merger on December 9, 2013, creating a new company, American Airlines Group, Inc., which was listed on NASDAQ that same day, although the effective integration of the airlines under one The single air operator certificate will not be completed until a later date. The combined airline will carry the American Airlines name and brand and will maintain US Airways hubs in Charlotte, Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Washington D.C. for a period of at least five years under the terms of an agreement with the United States Department of Justice and various state attorneys general.

History

A Stinson SM-6000 operated by American Airways.

American Airways was formed as a conglomerate of 82 small airlines through reorganizations and acquisitions. Initially, American Airways was a common brand used by a number of independent airlines. These included Southern Air Transport in Texas, Southern Air Fast Express (SAFE) in the Western United States, Universal Aviation in the Midwest (which operated a transcontinental route by air and rail in 1929), Thompson Aeronautical Services (which operated a Detroit-Cleveland route in 1929) and Colonial Air Transport in the Northeast. By 1933 American Airways operated a network of transcontinental routes serving 72 cities, primarily in the Northeast, Midwest, and Southwest of the United States.

In 1934, the company was bought by Errett Lobban Cord, who changed its name to "American Air Lines" and hired Cyrus Rowlett (C.R.) Smith to manage it, a position he held until 1968 and then in 1973 for a few months. Smith worked with the Douglas Aircraft Company to develop the Douglas DC-3, which American introduced to its fleet in 1936.

American Airlines worked closely with Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia to build the first airport in New York City, and as a result was the first airline in the world to own an exclusive lounge for its travelers ( Lounge, in English) at New York's LaGuardia Airport. This room was renamed the Admirals Club (Club de Almirantes, in Spanish). Membership was by invitation only, until a discrimination lawsuit changed the rules to paid admission, setting the model for other airline lounges around the world.

Postwar

Douglas DC-3 "Flagship", main type of American aircraft during the period of World War II.

After World War II, American Airlines acquired American Export Airlines (AOA), renaming it American Overseas Airlines for its services to Europe; AOA was sold to Pan Am in 1950. American Airlines created another subsidiary, Líneas Aéreas Americanas de México S.A., for flights to Mexico, building a series of airports in that country until 1961, when Capital merged with United, American Airlines was the airline largest airline in the United States and the second in the world, after Aeroflot.

On January 25, 1959, American Airlines introduced its first nonstop transcontinental service from the West Coast to the Atlantic Coast operating Boeing 707s. American Airlines invested $440 million in its fleet through 1962, launching the first electronic issuance system (Sabre) developed in conjunction with IBM, and built a new terminal at Idlewild (later renamed New York J.F. Kennedy Airport), becoming the airline's largest base of operations. Vignelli Associates designed the AA eagle logo in 1967. The logo was in use until January 17, 2013.

American Freighter's Boeing 707 at Basel-Mulhouse-Friburg Airport in France (near Basel) in 1976.

In September 1970, American began its first intercontinental flights from St. Louis, Chicago, and New York to Honolulu and, to Sydney and Auckland, via Pago Pago, American Samoa; and Nadi, Fiji. In May 1971, American Airlines acquired Trans Caribbean Airlines and took its flights to Aruba, Curacao, Port-au-Prince, San Juan, P.R., Saint Thomas, and Saint Croix.

American operated cargo operations called American Freighter until 1984, using only Boeing 707 and Boeing 747 aircraft that had previously been used in passenger service.

In 1979, American moved its operations center from New York to Dallas-Fort Worth, establishing its main hub at this airport and a second hub at Chicago-O'Hare for transatlantic flights.

1980-1990

Boeing 727 in 1989.

In 1982, American began its flights to London (LGW) from Dallas/Fort Worth, for which it acquired three DC10-30s from Air New Zealand. That same year on December 15, American Airlines its flights to Rio de Janeiro also from DFW route that would be canceled years later.

In the late 1980s, American Airlines opened three hubs for north-south traffic. San Jose International Airport was added after AirCal was purchased by Americana. American built a terminal and runway at Raleigh-Durham International Airport for the nearby growing Research Triangle Park, and to compete with USAir's Charlotte-Douglas hub. Nashville International Airport was also added as a hub. American also planned a hub at Denver's Stapleton International Airport in the mid-1980s, but deferred the plans due to the planned development of Denver International Airport.

Boeing 777-200ER landing at London-Heathrow Airport.

In 1990, American began its great expansion in Latin America, flying to Asunción, Buenos Aires, Cali, Bogotá, Guayaquil, La Paz, Lima, Quito, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Santiago de Chile. In addition, that same year, American bought the rights to routes from Miami to Latin America from the bankrupt Eastern Airlines (inherited from Braniff International Airways but originated by Pan American-Grace Airways, which was known as Panagra). Miami becomes one of the main operations centers of American Airlines, which during the 1990's established itself as the main air operator between the United States and the region. In 1999, American Airlines, along with British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Canadian Airlines, and Qantas, formed the Oneworld global alliance.

2000s

In 1998 Robert Crandall was replaced as president of the airline by Donald J. Carty, who in April 2001 negotiated the purchase of the almost bankrupt TWA for US$ 445 million its operating assets at London-Heathrow airport, establishing its main hub in Europe.

American Airlines began to lose money in the economic crisis that followed the attacks of September 11, 2001, in which two of its planes were destroyed. Carty negotiated salary and benefit agreements with unions, but resigned after union leaders discovered he intended to award executive compensation packages. This undermined AA's attempts to build trust with its workforce and increase their productivity. That same year the Saint Louis hub was closed and American Airlines removed its "More Room Throughout Coach" (which eliminated multiple rows of seats on certain aircraft), ended three-class service on many international flights, and standardized its fleet at each hub.

Boeing 767–300ER taking off.

However, the airline also expanded into new markets, including Ireland, India and mainland China. On July 20, 2005, American announced a quarterly profit for the first time in 17 quarters; the airline earned $58 million in the second quarter of 2005. AA was a strong supporter of the Wright Amendment, which regulated commercial airline operations out of Love Field in Dallas. On June 15, 2006, American agreed with Southwest Airlines and the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth to seek repeal of the Wright Amendment on the condition that Love Field remain a domestic airport and its gate capacity be limited.

The financial crisis of 2008 again put pressure on the airline. On July 2, 2008, American Airlines announced the temporary layoff of up to 950 flight attendants, through the Texas Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, and suspended the flights of 20 of its MD-80 aircraft. American's hub at Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico was reduced from 38 to 18 daily flights. All Airbus A300 aircraft were retired at the end of August 2009 and stored in Roswell, New Mexico.

American also closed its maintenance base in Kansas City, inherited from TWA. On August 13, 2008, The Kansas City Star reported that American Airlines would be moving some overhaul work from that base, repairs on Boeing 757s moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma along with one or two Boeing 767s.; the city's aviation department offered to upgrade the repair facility on the condition that the airline retain at least 700 jobs. On October 28, 2009, American notified its employees that it was closing its Kansas City base in September 2010 and would also close or cut back on five smaller maintenance stations, resulting in the loss of up to 700 jobs. American closed its maintenance base in Kansas City (MCI) on September 24, 2010.

American Airlines' Boeing 767-323ER aligning on the 23R track of Manchester.

American had had repeated run-ins with the FAA over maintenance of its fleet's MD-80s, canceling 1,000 flights for wiring inspections over three days in April 2008 to ensure they met FAA safety standards. government. In September 2009, the Associated Press and The Wall Street Journal reported that American was accused of concealing repeated lapses in maintenance on at least 16 MD-80s from the FAA. Repair issues included items such as faulty emergency slides, inappropriate engine covers, improperly drilled holes and other examples of shoddy workmanship. The most serious alleged lapse was the failure to repair cracks in the pressure bulkheads; a rupture of a bulkhead could lead to depressurization of the cabin. It was also alleged that the airline retired one aircraft in order to hide it from FAA inspectors. American began the process of replacing its older MD-80 aircraft with Boeing 737 and Airbus A319 and A321 aircraft.

American was a key player in the restructuring of Japan Airlines in 2009-2011. In September 2009, AMR Corporation announced that it was looking to buy part of JAL, which was experiencing financial problems, while rival Delta Air Lines was also looking to invest in the airline along with its SkyTeam partner Air France-KLM. Japan Airlines canceled potential deal negotiations with all carriers on October 5, 2009. Delta, with the help of TPG, in November 2009 made a US$1 billion offer to JAL to partner with them; two days later, it was reported that AA and TPG had teamed up and made a $1.5 billion cash offer to JAL. In February 2010, JAL officially announced that it would strengthen its relationship with American Airlines and Oneworld.

2010s

American Airlines' Boeing 757 on the final approach at Princess Juliana International Airport in San Martín.

In early July 2010, it was reported that American Airlines was trying to find buyers for its American Eagle regional carrier. The decision followed that of Delta Air Lines divesting its wholly owned regional carriers Compass Airlines and Mesaba Airlines.

American began a joint venture with British Airways and Iberia Airlines in October 2010, which included frequent flyer reciprocity. The USDOT granted preliminary antitrust immunity to AA for the partnership in February 2010, and the alliance was officially approved by the USDOT on July 20, 2010.

American Airlines also announced a partnership with JetBlue Airways in March 2010, covering 27 JetBlue destinations not served by American Airlines and 13 American Airlines international destinations from New York and Boston. American gave JetBlue eight pairs of slots (arrival and departure slots) at Ronald Reagan National Airport and one pair at Westchester County Airport, in return JetBlue gave American 12 pairs of slots at JFK Airport. As of November 18, 2010, the two airlines would give miles to their passengers in the frequent flyer program of both airlines, regardless of whether the routes included an international connection.

American has expanded its service to Asia. In February 2010 it was one of the first US airlines to bid to serve Tokyo Haneda Airport and was awarded the rights to serve Tokyo Haneda, Japan from New York JFK. American Airlines planned to start service JFK-Haneda in January 2011, but was pushed back to February 2011 citing low booking demand, eventually ending its JFK-Narita service in favor of JFK-Haneda service in June 2012. American also began service between Los Angeles and Shanghai in 2011 and between Dallas/Fort Worth and Seoul in 2013, and announced the launch of Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport service to both Shanghai and Hong Kong in summer 2014, providing the first nonstop service between Dallas/Fort Worth and China.

American placed "largest aircraft order in history" in July 2011, purchasing 460 "next generation" and Airbus A320 with delivery scheduled between 2013 and 2022. These aircraft were designed to replace American's short- and medium-haul fleet of 757-200, 767-200 and MD-80, to consolidate the fleet around four aircraft families. (Boeing 737, Airbus A320, Boeing 787 and Boeing 777).

Bankruptcy

An American Airlines Boeing 737-800 with the new freeway taking off Montreal Airport in 2013.

AMR Corporation filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on November 29, 2011. American Airlines announced a capacity reduction in July 2012 due to the grounding of several aircraft associated with its bankruptcy and lack of pilots. due to retirements. American Airlines' regional carrier, American Eagle, has retired 35 to 40 regional jets, as well as its Saab turboprop fleet. American Airlines ceased service to Delhi, India in March 2012.

In the summer of 2012, American Airlines was considering a merger with another airline as part of its restructuring plan. American Airlines considered merger proposals involving US Airways, JetBlue, Alaska Airlines, Frontier Airlines, and Virgin America. On August 31, 2012, US Airways CEO Doug Parker announced that American Airlines and US Airways had signed an agreement of confidentiality, in which the airlines should discuss their finances and a possible merger.

American Airlines notified more than 11,000 workers of possible job losses as part of its bankruptcy reorganization and reduced its flights from two percent to one percent in September and October 2012. In October, the airline announced plans to hire 2,500 pilots over two years to staff new international and domestic routes. The Pilots Association, which represents American Airlines pilots, voted in December 2012 to ratify a tentative agreement between the company and the union.

In January 2013, American unveiled a new logo and brand identity, unveiling the design of its first Boeing 777-300ER which entered service later that month. In 2017, the civil rights group NAACP issued a warning to members of the African American community not to travel on American Airlines, citing multiple instances of racial discrimination.

Destinations

American Airlines flies primarily to cities in North America, Central America, the Caribbean, South America and Europe. It also has flights to China, Japan, and South Korea in Asia, and to Australia, New Zealand, and other countries in Oceania. Its hubs by number of departures are the Dallas-Fort Worth, Miami, Chicago-O'Hare, Los Angeles and New York-JFK airports.

Routes operated by the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner

Fleet

Current fleet

American aircraft at Phoenix-Sky Harbor Airport.

Boeing 737 with retro book “Astrojet” at Juan Santamaría International Airport in San José.

Boeing 777 of American Airlines at Galeão International Airport, Rio de Janeiro.

Air view of an American Airlines plane.

Boeing 757-200 at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.

American is the largest operator of the Airbus A320 family in the world. It operates the largest fleet of A321 and A319 aircraft.

As of February 2023, the American Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft, with an average age of 12.5 years:

American Airlines fleet

Airplane	In service	Orders	Passengers						Notes
			F	B	PE	MCE	MC	Total
Airbus A319-100	133	-	8	-	-	24	96	128	Bigger operator. First ROPS+ operator in the USA.
Airbus A320-200	48	-	12	-	-	18	120	150	First ROPS+ operator in the USA.
Airbus A321-200	200	-	16	-	-	36	129	181	To be converted the configuration of 190 seats for spring 2022. First ROPS+ operator in the USA.
			16			15	156.	187
			20			47	123	190	Bigger operator. First ROPS+ operator in the USA.
	18		10	20		36	36	102.	Transcontinental configuration. First ROPS+ operator in the USA.
Airbus A321-253NX	69	1	20	-	-	47	129	196	First ROPS+ operator in the USA.
Airbus A321XLR	-	50	ASA						To be delivered between 2023 and 2025. First ROPS+ operator in the USA.
Boeing 737-823	303	-	16	-	-	30	126	172
Boeing 737-8MAX	42	58	16	-	-	30	126	172
Boeing 777-223ER	47	-	-	37	24	66	146	273
Boeing 777-323ER	20	-	8	52	28	28	188	304
Boeing 787-8	33	3	-	20	28	48	138	234
Boeing 787-9	22	30	-	30	21	34	200	285
Total	935	142	12.5 average fleet years (February 2023)

Historical fleet

The airline operated in its history the following aircraft:

Accidents and incidents

• In 1947, American Airlines Flight 311 covering the route between Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, Texas, to the city of Los Angeles, California, in a Douglas DC-4 tetramotor, with 49 passengers and 9 crew members, among which was in the jumpseat of the cabin the pilot Charles Robert Sisto (35) who did not make part of the crew, but when he was employed by this company, he was allowed to board the 7:00 flight. When the plane is at its cruise altitude of 10,000 feet, the Sisto pilot plays a joke to his colleagues activating the Gust Lock, located behind the captain's seat, blocking the unstatic alar surfaces, command that is only used for when the device is stationed on the ground and preventing the wind from moving and damaging the controls, should not be used in full flight. As a result, Captain Jack Beck, who piloted the plane manually, notes that the aircraft starts to rise out of the normal, so he decides to lower a few degrees the angle of the tail stabilizer using the control wheel of the stabilizer, but despite this, the plane continues to rise while the captain continues to try with the control of the stabilizer without obtaining the expected response of the machine. Captain and co-driver Frederick Logan are puzzled by plane behavior. Finally, Sisto decides that her joke has come far, when she ends up deactivating the Gust Lock, causing the aircraft to slam down, causing the captain and the "passenger pylotus" to go off into the cabin roof (these two crewmen didn't carry their belts fastened). Sisto falls knocking on the head the flag-up controls accidentally driving him, causing the plane to lose speed. With the inverted aircraft, the co-pilot (which if it was wearing its belts), reaches the controls to regain control of the apparatus, achieving its target at only 350 feet (100 meters) of the ground. Once the control has been recovered, it takes the ship to El Paso Airport, Texas to carry out an emergency landing without dead or seriously injured, making that heavy joke almost cost the lives of all 55 people on board. In subsequent research it is determined that when the active Gust Lock is in place, the captain's commands on the trim wheel did not take effect until Sisto deactivated it, leveling horizontal stabilizers thoroughly and causing a sudden inclination of the plane. The flagship of the blades, caused by the blow Sisto gave with his head the controls decreased the speed of the plane allowing Logan to recover the controls of the wings. Sisto is fired from this airline, his driver's license is revoked, but he continued his career in Asian and Middle Eastern airlines.
• January 22, 1952, A Convair CV-240 to American Airlines Flight 6780 crashes into the city of Elizabeth.
• In 1962, flight 1 crashed after taking off John F. Keneddy International Airport. 95 people died. The cause of the accident was attributed to a factory defect in the automatic pilot system and the lack of maintenance of the Boeing 707 aircraft.
• In 1972, Flight 96 suffered explosive decompression and partial loss of controls shortly after taking off from Detroit, Michigan. However, the pilots managed to land the DC-10. The rear cargo door opened in flight, because there was a design fault. After the accident, security measures were taken that proved insufficient when Turkish Airlines Flight 981 crashed in Paris in 1974, an almost identical accident in which 346 people died.
• In 1979, Flight 191 crashed in Chicago right after taking off. 273 people died and became the worst unique aviation disaster in the United States. The left engine completely separated from the wing by damaging some systems, the plane turned unchecked to the left and uninformed on the impact. American Airlines had made a motor change incorrectly 8 weeks earlier, damaging the pylon. The plane was a DC-10. I was headed for Los Angeles.
• In 1995, the 965 flight crashed on a mountain as it attempted to land in Cali, Colombia, with origin from Miami. The pilots erased the Boeing 757 flight plan. Then, they tried to introduce a control point that they had erased and introduced a wrong one, so the plane turned and headed from Cali to Bogotá crashing with the Andes and crashed. 159 people died, they survived only 4.
• In 1999, flight 1420 left the track in Little Rock, Arkansas where 11 people died. The pilots were pressed and flew into severe storms. When they touched the ground, they forgot to activate the aerodynamic brakes and the plane could not stop. The plane was a MD-80.
• On 12 November 2001, two months and one day after the September 11 attacks, flight 587 crashed in Queens, New York, one and a half minute after taking off John Fitzgerald Kennedy Airport. The Airbus A300 flew behind a Japan Airlines Boeing 747, the copilot used the tail rudder inadequately to stabilize the plane, forcing it so that the entire vertical stabilizer separated from the plane. Then the plane landed out of control, dying 265 people. This manoeuvre of the use of the helm was previously criticized by the manufacturer Airbus to American Airlines, as they taught to force the helm to stabilize the plane during turbulence. It's nicknamed "The Queens Catastrophe."
• On January 26, 2007, a Boeing 777 that covered the Miami-São Paulo route (Brazil), had to land emergency at Maiquetia International Airport in Caracas, Venezuela, due to a fire in the cabin. The plane carried 245 passengers, which were unharmed.g
• On 27 January 2008, flight 947 un Boeing 757 with route Miami-Santa Cruz de la Sierra (Bolivia), had to land in emergency at Ernesto Cortissoz International Airport in Barranquilla, Colombia, due to a fuel leak. The aircraft overflew the city of Barranquilla for 44 minutes until it landed. There was no one injured. The passengers spent the night in the city of Barranquilla and were taken on January 28 in a flight from Barranquilla - Santa Cruz de La Sierra.
• On 3 January 2009, flight 924 a Boeing 737-800 that had taken off from José María Córdova Airport at 10 a.m. had to land in an emergency because it presented fire in one of its engines. At the time of landing the pilot was forced to use the brakes to the maximum because the plane lost 50% of its engines; when touching the track the brake system was reheated and one of its tires exploded. Airport operations were closed for four hours. The plane carried 148 passengers, which were unharmed in the emergency.
• On December 23, 2009, flight 331 a Boeing 737-800, which had taken off from Miami International Airport, with 150 people on board overwhelmed the track when landing at Norman Manley International Airport, capital Kingston, Jamaica, and skated to the shore of the Caribbean Sea while heavy rains fell. Some of the wounded were seriously injured, at the time of the impact the fuselage of the aircraft broke in three parts, its right engine was detached and the left landing gear collapsed, according to airline spokesman Tim Smith at the company headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas.
• On September 19, 2013, a Boeing 757 that went from Juan Santamaría International Airport in Costa Rica to Miami International Airport, had to land emergency at Gustavo Rojas Pinilla International Airport on the island of San Andrés due to the presence of smoke in the cabin. 7 hours later, a second Boeing 757 aircraft transported passengers to their original destination.
• On October 28, 2016, flight 383 from Chicago-O'Hare Airport to Miami International Airport was unable to take off because one of the tires on the right side of the aircraft, a Boeing 767, was burst causing serious damage to the right engine of the aircraft and causing a fire. Passengers were evacuated from emergency, no casualties or injuries.
• On July 22, 2018, flight 900 suffered, at Gualeguaychú's height, a failure of presumption -- it claimed that it would have lost fuel -- and the pilot decided to return to Ezeiza to avoid further complications. The flight took Christine Lagarde.

Attacks of September 11, 2001

On September 11, 2001, AA Flights 11 and 77, along with United Airlines Flights 175 and 93 were hijacked by Al Qaeda terrorists, leading to Flight 11 crashing into the World Trade Center in New York, specifically in the North Tower (WTC1) and later Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon, collapsing part of the country's Defense Building. The other flight that crashed into the South Tower (WTC2), was a United Airlines flight (Flight 175), 16 minutes after AA Flight 11 made its first impact.

Advertising

American Airlines is a title sponsor of the basketball arena: the American Airlines Center of the Dallas Mavericks

Worries and conflicts

Environmental Violations

Between October 1993 and July 1998, American Airlines was repeatedly cited for using high-sulfur fuel in motor vehicles at 10 major airports across the country, a violation of the Clean Air Act.

Lifetime Airpass

Since 1981, as a means of generating revenue in a period of loss, American Airlines had offered an unlimited travel pass for life, for an initial cost of $250,000. This entitles the pass holder to fly anywhere in the world. 28 were sold. However, after a while, the airline realized that it had not been a good deal, having spent as much as $1 million per partner. Ticket holders booked large numbers of flights, with some ticket holders making intercontinental trips several times a month. American Airlines raised the cost of the lifetime pass to $3 million, eventually stopping offering it in 2003. American Airlines later used litigation to cancel two of the lifetime offers, saying the passes "had been canceled due to fraudulent activities".