AMR announces that it will lay off 323 flight attendants on April 1, 2009 because of the slump in travel and demand for flights.
AMR announces that it will not cut its airlines' capacity in the forseeable future despite weak forward bookings. http://biz.yahoo.com/rb/090203/business_us_american_airlines.html?.v=2
AMR posts Q4 earnings - the company lost money in the 4th quarter and a total of $2.07 billion during 2008.http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/090121/earns_airlines.html?.v=8
Crude oil prices dropped $1.58 on 12/24 to $37.40/barrel signaling improved profitability for airlines.
AMR reported that its November traffic decreased 14.5% and its capacity dropped 9.3% from the same period a year earlier as consumer travel weakened following the economic recession.
Oil prices reached $67.94 per barrel on October 31, 2008, less than half as much as its peak of $145.29 per barrel in July. This means that AMR and other airlines have a much better chance of being profitable in 2009 as fuel expenses are airlines' highest costs.
Today American announced that it will cut thousands of jobs, retired additional aircraft ahead of schedule, and charge passengers a per-bag checking fee. It also said that domestic capacity would be reduced by 11-12% for the fourth quarter.
American reported a decrease of 2.0% in its load factor and a decrease of 6.6% in actual seat-miles flown for April (year over year). This falling of demand is killing the company as fixed costs continue to soar.
American Airlines was forced to cancel over 3,000 flights during a one week period in order to comply with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) demands for safety inspections on the airline's MD-80 aircraft. The canceled flights meant reduced revenue and decreased satisfaction among American passengers, which placed negative pressure on the stock price.
