American Executives need to go....

[WorldTraveler]

Horton now holds all three top positions per the news services as he was referred to as the Chairman, CEO and president - the HMFNIC. His "on the record" comments don't bode well for in-house maintenance. Arpey is rather young so it's rather evident he was shown the door - ie, "retire" and take your Golden Parachute with you.

AA has no choice but to promote someone from within to finish the restructuring process.. no one from the outside is going to come in for a couple years and do the nasty cuts that are part of BK, esp. when the chances are very good that he/she won't be asked by the creditors to stick around coming out of BK.
.
There is a separate set of skills to turn a company around via cuts than to rebuild it after the cutting process is finished.
In retrospect, Arpey wasn't the "cutter" ... in reailty he didn't cut deep enough or use the cuts he obtained to turn things around. Sort of ironic but he tried to be nice and it ended up that he will be remembered as the one who took AA into its darkest hours...
BTW, you can expect now that Horton will probably leave at the end of BK with a very handsome set of parting gifts.

 

[eolesen]

Horton now holds all three top positions per the news services as he was referred to as the Chairman, CEO and president - the HMFNIC. His "on the record" comments don't bode well for in-house maintenance. Arpey is rather young so it's rather evident he was shown the door - ie, "retire" and take your Golden Parachute with you.

Not evident at all, Frank.

Arpey appears to have resigned because he disagreed with the decision to file. It's in his letter to the employees if you read between the lines, and he starts out by saying that the board asked him to stay on as Chair and CEO.

By now you know that today the company filed for protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. After much thought and deliberation, the AMR Board of Directors concluded that this was the best step to secure the company's future – and indeed, I have no doubt that with restructured costs and more degrees of freedom to run the business, American Airlines will emerge from bankruptcy protection as a more efficient, more competitive, and stronger company.

Restructuring through bankruptcy will no doubt be a challenging process, and it's no secret that we have tried exceptionally hard over the last decade to avoid this outcome. But the process also represents an opportunity to rebuild AA in a way that assures it will not just survive, but thrive and win in the global marketplace.

I respect the decision of the Board of Directors to take this path, and I am grateful for their request that I continue serving as your Chairman and Chief Executive. However, after careful consideration, I concluded that my remaining in those roles would not be best for the company. In my view, executing the Board's plan will require not only a reevaluation of every aspect of our business, but also the leadership of a new Chairman and CEO who will bring restructuring experience and a different perspective to the process. That is why I informed the Board of my decision to retire from the company.

Horton's got the restructuring experience from AT&T, and he knows AA inside out. You probably won't find anyone else more capable if you expect the company to actually emerge after the restructuring process.

 

[Frank Szabo]

Not evident at all, Frank.

Arpey appears to have resigned because he disagreed with the decision to file. It's in his letter to the employees if you read between the lines, and he starts out by saying that the board asked him to stay on as Chair and CEO.



Horton's got the restructuring experience from AT&T, and he knows AA inside out. You probably won't find anyone else more capable if you expect the company to actually emerge after the restructuring process.

I'm afraid I can't take the "nice" letters from "management" with anything but an entire bag of salt. Arpey's way of "managing" the airline ran it into the ground - that should be a firing offense, even for the elite. Horton is a relatively unknown factor.

Absent sounds from any mice that happened to be in the room at the time, we'll have only our our gut feelings to believe - mine says Arpey was cashiered from the Ivory Tower of Centrepork.

 

[OldGuy@AA]

Ourpay is gone now Whoreton gets to rape and pillage. How do they keep finding these guys?

 

[The Phantom]

Hopefully they will start to get rid of most of the problems from the top down. Do we really need all these executives to run the company???

 

[eolesen]

dupe

 

[eolesen]

Arpey is rather young so it's rather evident he was shown the door - ie, "retire" and take your Golden Parachute with you.

Frank, it's being reported that Arpey isn't leaving with any severence.

Just further debunks the claim he was "shown the door" by the board. I'm still of the opinion he quit over the decision to file.

Had he been shown the door, he would have been due severance, even under bankruptcy.

 

[Frank Szabo]

Frank, it's being reported that Arpey isn't leaving with any severence.

Just further debunks the claim he was "shown the door" by the board. I'm still of the opinion he quit over the decision to file.

I've not seen that tidbit yet - not trying to call you out, but where was the item/article?

If true, that would add considerable weight to the notion the 2003 debacle and associated give-backs were a manufactured lie allowed to take place by the BOD (in addition to Carty's "falling on the sword" departure) and aided by our so-called "representation". When did he begin his "I have a moral objection to bankruptcy" mantra?

Not leaving with severence pay typically means "quitting" - in this case, 'quitting' being offered as an option by the employer.

We'll have to agree to disagree - it still sounds to me like he was shown the door.

 

[Flying low]

Frank, it's being reported that Arpey isn't leaving with any severence.

Just further debunks the claim he was "shown the door" by the board. I'm still of the opinion he quit over the decision to file.

Had he been shown the door, he would have been due severance, even under bankruptcy.

I read something similar to this yesterday (forget where) as I read a lot. But I also took it the same way. BOD wanted to take the company to BK, and asked Arpey to see it through. Arpy didn't want to go this route, so he left. I'm also the opinion of that Arpy was the only "ally" OH had in upper management, time will tell.

 

[eolesen]

http://www.wfaa.com/news/local/FAA-increases-oversight-of-American-no-Golden-Parachute-for-Arpey-134725663.html

News 8 has also learned that AMR's outgoing CEO Gerard Arpey isn't leaving the company with a "golden parachute." AMR said he will not receive a severance or an exit bonus since he voluntarily decided to retire.
Arpey, 53, will be eligible for his regular retirement when he turns 55, a spokesman said.

The guy had 30 real years of service with the company, unlike the claims against Garton, Carty, etc. who were given additional years of service credit.

I really do believe the guy had a moral objection to bankruptcy, and quit because of it. Why that's so hard for some to believe is beyond me.

 

[FWAAA]

http://www.wfaa.com/news/local/FAA-increases-oversight-of-American-no-Golden-Parachute-for-Arpey-134725663.html

The guy had 30 real years of service with the company, unlike the claims against Garton, Carty, etc. who were given additional years of service credit.

I really do believe the guy had a moral objection to bankruptcy, and quit because of it. Why that's so hard for some to believe is beyond me.

I agree. Some want to see a conspiracy theory behind every tree and don't believe anything filed by the company with the SEC. The board gave Arpey 8.5 years to get it done without bankruptcy but when the board voted to file, it's obvious that he would leave, even if the board asked him to stay.

 

[787nightmare]

I started to type something similiar, commenting on Gerards principals, but decided not to.
I'm going to now. I concur with you guys above. I believe because of Gerard, AMR hadn't filied Ch 11 BK sooner.
He is a very principaled, God fearing man. AMR wanted him to stay, but he thought it best to step down and move on.
I have no doubts tears were shed yesterday. 30 years....

I don't personally know what kind of guy Horton is, but I have a feeling he ain't gonna be so considerate of the "AA family" as Gerard was. With the BK "tools" at his disposal, you guys(& me, for a little while)are going to find out what a "hatchet man" looks like.
I hope I'm wrong....but...

 

[chris perry]

If Arpey had a moral objection to BK my hats off! It's become crystal clear that airline BOD's and Management are using it to gain the competitive edge.
That I believe is morally wrong. It has forced countless BK filings in the airline industry. We just happen to be the next in line..The cycle will repeat itself just stby and watch. Deregulation is a failure its made countless lawyers,Bankers and Ceo's rich at the workers expense.

 

[FWAAA]

A lot of people have whined over the past few years about the lack of an "airline guy" in charge (that the company was run by finance guys), but the truth is that Arpey was an airline guy who also knew finance. Horton is a finance guy, not an airline guy. According to some, Arpey is the devil because of the PUP/PSP variable compensation scheme but the replacements may turn out to be even worse.

 

[787nightmare]

A lot of people have whined over the past few years about the lack of an "airline guy" in charge (that the company was run by finance guys), but the truth is that Arpey was an airline guy who also knew finance. Horton is a finance guy, not an airline guy. According to some, Arpey is the devil because of the PUP/PSP variable compensation scheme but the replacements may turn out to be even worse.

Exactly.