American Airlines Group

American Airlines Group Inc. is an American publicly traded airline holding company headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. It was formed on December 9, 2013, by the merger of AMR Corporation, the parent company of American Airlines, and US Airways Group, the parent company of US Airways.[6] Integration was completed when the Federal Aviation Administration granted a single operating certificate for both carriers on April 8, 2015,[7] and all flights now operate under the American Airlines brand.

American Airlines Group Inc.
TypePublic
IndustryAviation
PredecessorsAMR Corporation
US Airways Group[1]
FoundedDecember 9, 2013 (2013-12-09)
HeadquartersCentrePort,
Fort Worth, Texas
,
United States[1]
Number of locations
350 destinations*
Area served
Worldwide[2]
Key people
Production output
6,700 daily flights[2] (2013)
ServicesAir transportation
Revenue $45.768 billion (2019)[4]
$3.065 billion (2019)[4]
$1.686 billion (2019)[4]
Total assets $59.995 billion (2019)[4]
Total equity $-118 million (2019)[4]
Number of employees
~133,700 (December 2019)[4]
DivisionsAmerican Airlines Cargo
American Eagle
American Airlines Shuttle[1]
SubsidiariesAmerican Airlines, Inc.
Envoy Air Inc.
Piedmont Airlines, Inc.
PSA Airlines, Inc.[1]
Websiteaa.com
Footnotes / references
* Hubs in Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Washington[5]

The group operates the largest airline in the world, as measured by number of passengers carried, by fleet size and by scheduled passenger-kilometers flown. The company ranked No. 70 in the Fortune 500 list of the largest United States corporations based on its 2019 revenue,[8] but, impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, it lost $2.2 billion in the first quarter of 2020 alone and accepted government aid, and is reported to be shrinking its passenger fleet.[8]

History

Merger proposals and plans

In January 2012, US Airways Group, the parent company of US Airways, expressed interest in taking over AMR Corporation, the parent company of American Airlines.[9] In March, AMR's CEO Tom Horton said that the company was open to a merger.[10] US Airways told some American Airlines creditors that merging the two carriers could yield more than $1.5 billion a year in added revenue and cost savings.[11] On April 20, American Airlines' three unions said they supported a proposed merger between the two airlines.[12] With AMR under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, American Airlines had been looking to merge with another airline. Earlier in July, a bankruptcy court filing stated that US Airways was an American Airlines creditor and "prospective merger partner"; on August 31, US Airways CEO Doug Parker announced that American Airlines and US Airways had signed a nondisclosure agreement, in which they would discuss the possibility of a merger.[13]

In February 2013, American Airlines and US Airways announced plans to merge, creating the largest airline in the world by some measurements. In the deal, which was expected to close in the third quarter of 2013, stakeholders of AMR would own 72% of the company and US Airways shareholders would own the remaining 28%. Rothschild & Co served as the investment bank for the transaction.[14][15] The combination was considered a "merger of equals" between the two airlines, but retaining the more well-established "American" name going forward,[16] and accordingly the holding company was renamed American Airlines Group Inc.[17] The headquarters for the new group was also consolidated at American's headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas,[18][19] but the US Airways' management team, including CEO Doug Parker, retained most operational management positions.

Judge Sean Lane approved the merger on March 27, 2013, but declined to approve a proposed $20 million severance package to AMR executive Tom Horton 'for now'.[20] On July 12, US Airways shareholders approved the proposed merger.[21]

Attempts to block the merger

On August 13, 2013, the United States Department of Justice, along with attorneys general from the District of Columbia, Arizona (headquarters of US Airways), Florida, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas (headquarters of American Airlines),[22] and Virginia filed a lawsuit seeking to block the merger, arguing that it would mean less competition and higher prices. American Airlines and US Airways both said that they would fight against the lawsuit and defend their merger.[23] In early October 2013, the Attorney General of Texas quit the anti-trust lawsuit.

The Department of Justice reached a settlement on November 12, 2013, requiring the merged airline to give up landing slots or gates in 7 major airports.[24] Under the deal, the new American was required to sell 104 slots at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and 34 slots at LaGuardia Airport. It was also required to sell gates at O'Hare International Airport, Los Angeles International Airport, Logan International Airport, Dallas Love Field and Miami International Airport.[25] Some of the slots were expected to be sold to low-cost carriers such as JetBlue and Southwest Airlines.[26]

A private antitrust suit, filed by a group of 40 passengers and travel agents, also sought to block the merger.[27] American's bankruptcy court judge refused to enjoin the two airlines from merging, saying that the group did not demonstrate that the merger would irreparably harm them.[28] The plaintiffs' lawyer appealed and was turned down at the U.S. District Court level and was further rebuffed at the Supreme Court after Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg denied a stay request filed by him.[29]

Implementation of merger

Following the Department of Justice approval, the merged Group company traded on the NASDAQ stock exchange under the symbol AAL.[30][31] In December 2013 a severance package valued at about $17 million was agreed for Tom Horton, the outgoing AMR CEO, who had led American Airlines through bankruptcy and the major merger.[32]

US Airways exited Star Alliance upon completion of the merger, and American retained their membership in the Oneworld alliance.

On July 13, 2015, American announced that it planned to discontinue the US Airways brand name by October 17, 2015, and on October 16, 2015, US Airways flew its final flight, US Airways Flight 1939, from Philadelphia-Charlotte-Phoenix-San Francisco-Philadelphia.[33]

Corporate affairs

Ownership and group structure

American Airlines Group, Inc. is publicly traded under NASDAQ: AAL, with a market capitalization of about $6 billion as of August 2020,[34] and is included in the S&P 500 index.[9]

The group operates through its principal wholly owned mainline operating subsidiary, American Airlines.

It also has three subsidiaries, regional carriers Envoy Air Inc., Piedmont Airlines, Inc., and PSA Airlines Inc. that, together with three independent carriers, operate American Eagle under a codeshare and service agreement with American Airlines.[9]

The key trends for American Airlines Group since December 9, 2013, the earliest date that American and US Airways were under common control, are shown below (as at year ending December 31):

2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Group financial trends
Turnover ($USm) 42,650 40,990 40,180 42,622 44,541 45,768
Profit before tax ($USm) 3,212 4,616 4,299 3,395 1,884 2,256
Net profit ($USm) 2,882 7,610 2,676 1,282 1,412 1,686
Basic EPS (US$) 4.02 11.39 4.81 2.61 3.03 3.80
Group operational trends
Number of employees (FTE at year end)(000s) 113.3 118.5 122.3 126.6 128.9 133.7
Number of passengers (m) 197.3 201.2 203.7 215.2
Passenger load factor (%) 82.0 83.0 82.0 84.6
Cargo ton miles (m) 2,333 2,314 2,908 2,489
Number of aircraft (at year end) 1,549 1,533 1,551 1,547
Notes/sources [35] [35] [34] [34] [34][36] [34][36]

References
  1. "American Airlines Group Overview". American Airlines, Inc. October 2015. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
  2. "World's largest airline formed as American Airlines and US Airways merge". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. December 10, 2013. Retrieved December 10, 2013.
  3. "American Airlines Group Executive Leadership Team". American Airlines, Inc. 2015. Archived from the original on March 16, 2016. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
  4. "American Airlines Group Inc. 2019 Annual Report (Form 10-K)". sec.gov. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. January 2020. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
  5. "Hub and State Fact Sheets". American Airlines, Inc. 2014. Archived from the original on November 22, 2015. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
  6. "The new American Airlines". Chicago Tribune. Tribune Publishing. December 8, 2013. Archived from the original on December 9, 2013. Retrieved December 8, 2013.
  7. Karp, Gregory (April 8, 2015). "American Airlines, US Airways get FAA approval to fly as one carrier". Chicago Tribune. Tribune Publishing. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  8. "Fortune 500". Fortune. Retrieved August 21, 2020.
  9. Matt Joyce (January 26, 2012). "US Airways CEO confirms interest in American Airlines". Charlotte Business Journal. Retrieved March 24, 2012.
  10. "American Airlines open to merger, CEO hints". Charlotte Business Journal. March 19, 2012. Retrieved March 24, 2012.
  11. "WSJ: US Airways Considers Merger With American Airlines". NewsOn6.com. Retrieved May 17, 2012.
  12. "3 unions push American Air toward US Airways merger talks". Chicago Tribune. April 22, 2012. Archived from the original on April 21, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2012.
  13. "Creditor, 'prospective merger partner' US Airways gives support to American exclusivity extension". LeveragedLoan.com. July 15, 2012.
  14. "American Airlines, US Airways unveil $11 billion merger". Reuters. February 14, 2013. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
  15. Kennedy, Gary (Gary F.) (February 6, 2018). Twelve years of turbulence : the inside story of American Airlines' battle for survival. Maxon, Terry, Staubach, Roger. New York. ISBN 9781682614884. OCLC 1030744604.
  16. Harlan, Chico (September 25, 2015). "Landing a mega-merger: The last days of US Airways". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 2, 2017.
  17. Koenig, David (February 19, 2013). "American Airlines' CEO to get $20 million severance". USA Today. Retrieved February 21, 2013.
  18. "American Airlines, US Airways unveil $11 billion merger". Reuters. February 14, 2013. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
  19. "American Airlines and US Airways to Create a Premier Global Carrier—The New American Airlines" (Press release). Fort Worth, TX & Tempe, AZ: AMR & US Airways Group. February 14, 2013. Archived from the original on February 16, 2013. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
  20. "AA-US Airways Merger Approved, Not CEO Severance". KXAS-TV (NBC DFW). Retrieved March 27, 2013.
  21. Jones, Charisse (July 12, 2013). "US Airways shareholders OK American Airlines merger". USA Today. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
  22. "American Airlines has no Plan B, will take the antitrust fight to court". The Dallas Morning News. August 20, 2013. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  23. Evan Perez (August 13, 2013). "US government seeks to block American-US Airways merger". CNN.
  24. Maxon, Terry (December 11, 2013). "Confirmed: Settlement reached in the American Airlines-US Airways case". Dallas News. Archived from the original on November 14, 2013. Retrieved November 12, 2013.
  25. Had Mouawad; Christopher Drew (November 12, 2013). "Justice Dept. Clears Merger of 2 Airlines". The New York Times.
  26. Isidore, Chris; Perez, Evan (November 12, 2013). "The Justice Department has reached a settlement with American Airlines and US Airways that requires the airlines to sell facilities at seven airports in order to complete their planned merger". CNN Money. Retrieved November 12, 2013.
  27. American-US Merger Still Faces Private Antitrust Lawsuit. Frequent Business Traveler (November 18, 2013). Retrieved December 8, 2013.
  28. Gives Green Light for American Air Exit from Bankruptcy and Merger with US Airways. Frequent Business Traveler (November 27, 2013). Retrieved December 8, 2013.
  29. Supreme Court Declines to Block American, US Air Merger. Frequent Business Traveler (December 8, 2013). Retrieved December 8, 2013.
  30. Ausick, Paul (November 15, 2013). "Merged U.S. Airways, American Airlines Will List with Nasdaq". 24/7 Wall St. via Yahoo! Finance. Retrieved November 15, 2013.
  31. US Airways fact sheet
  32. Martin, Hugo (December 11, 2013). "American Airlines CEO to get $17-million severance package". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  33. Beewax, Marilyn. "As Airline Megamergers Wrap Up, US Airways Flies Into History". NPR.org. Retrieved October 17, 2015.
  34. "Annual Report and Accounts 2019". WSJ. Retrieved August 21, 2020.
  35. "Form 10-K Annual Report American Airlines Group Inc. Year Ended December 31, 2015". American Airlines Group. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  36. "American Airlines Group Inc. Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations 2019" (PDF). WSJ. Retrieved August 21, 2020.
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