Court Clears American Air Plan To Lay Off 3,100 Workers

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AMR Finalizing Plans for More Flight Cuts, Streamlining


FORT WORTH, Texas -- American Airlines parent AMR Corp.(NYSE:AMR) (AMR) will cut flights and scale back operations at a number of its U.S. facilities.
President and Chief Executive Gerard Arpey said some of the plans should be announced "shortly."
An American Airlines spokesman declined to elaborate on the timing of the decisions or the depth of the anticipated cuts.
"The reality is we will not be able to fly every nonstop route we fly today, nor will we be able to provide the same level of service in markets that cannot profitably support our current flight schedule," said Mr. Arpey in a statement. "We are likewise examining our infrastructure needs across our system."
American said it has been in has been in talks with business, community and political leaders around the country concerning its future plans, and it will continue reviewing their proposals in the near term.
The company specifically said it would be evaluating the performance of its three Midwestern hubs in Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth and St. Louis; its eight U.S. reservations offices and its major maintenance bases at Fort Worth, Kansas City, Mo., and Tulsa, Okla.
The review is in part the result of American''s continued fleet reductions. The carrier noted it has 57 fewer airplanes than a year ago, with capacity planned to fall another 57 planes in the next year. By mid-2004, American''s fleet will be roughly the same size it was in March 2000, the airline said.
In May, American won employee approval for $1.8 billion in annual labor concessions that the cash-strapped carrier said it needed to avoid bankruptcy. Still, the company has admitted a bankruptcy filing is still possible. AMR lost more than $5.2 billion over the past two years and another $1 billion in the first quarter of 2003.
Earlier Tuesday, American began laying off more than 3,100 flight attendants after a federal judge turned aside a union''s bid to block the job losses. More than half the workers who lost their jobs had worked for Trans World Airlines before AMR bought TWA out of bankruptcy in 2001. The layoffs were part of the labor concessions approved by the attendants.

 

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American Air Begins Laying Off 3,100 Flight Attendants


DALLAS (AP)--American Airlines began laying off more than 3,100 flight attendants Tuesday, after a federal judge turned aside a union''s bid to block the job losses.
More than half the workers who lost their jobs Tuesday had worked for Trans World Airlines before American''s parent company bought TWA out of bankruptcy in 2001.
In St. Louis, the longtime home of TWA, and other bases around the country, flight attendants finishing their last day of work were turning in uniforms, identification badges and keys.
The 3,123 layoffs were sealed in May when American and its employees agreed to $1.8 billion in annual labor cost reductions to keep the company out of bankruptcy. The concessions, including sharp pay cuts, were approved in contentious voting by unions representing flight attendants, pilots and ground workers.
A spokesman for American said service would not be affected by the layoffs. About 900 flight attendants were being transferred to St. Louis to replace the laid-off TWA workers, he said.
Former TWA employees bore the brunt of the layoffs because they lost in a power struggle between two union groups after American parent AMR Corp.(NYSE:AMR) (AMR) bought TWA. The Association of Professional Flight Attendants, representing American''s workers, placed former TWA attendants at the bottom of the seniority list, making them the first to be hit by layoffs.
The former TWA flight attendants workers went to federal court in New York in an attempt to block the layoffs with a lawsuit against American, its former chief executive, TWA and the president of American''s flight attendants'' union. Judge Carol Bagley Amon ruled Monday against the former TWA workers.
AMR''s acquisition of TWA backfired when air travel declined - especially after the September 2001 terror attacks - and left American with too many empty seats on their planes.
Since then, American and most other major U.S. carriers have grounded dozens of jets to cut costs and cut the jobs of more than 100,000 pilots, flight attendants, mechanics and other workers.
AMR has lost more than $6 billion since the beginning of 2001.

 

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ST. LOUIS (AP)--A New York court Monday refused an attempt by former Trans World Airlines (X.TWA) flight attendants to delay layoffs, making Tuesday the last day on the job for more than 3,100 American Airlines employees, many of whom are former TWA workers who live and work in St. Louis.
The layoffs are part of AMR Corp.(NYSE:AMR) (AMR) unit American''s effort to regain financial stability. American merged with St. Louis-based TWA in 2001, leaving the former TWA employees at the bottom of the seniority list and most susceptible to layoffs.

 

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American Airlines goes ahead with layoffs of 3,100 flight attendants
DALLAS, Jul 01, 2003 (The Canadian Press via COMTEX) -- American Airlines began laying off more than 3,100 flight attendants on Tuesday, after a federal judge turned aside a union''s bid to block the job cuts.
More than half the workers who lost their jobs Tuesday had worked for Trans World Airlines before American''s parent company bought TWA out of bankruptcy in 2001. In St. Louis, the longtime home of TWA, and other bases around the country, flight attendants finishing their last day of work were turning in uniforms, identification badges and keys.
The 3,123 layoffs were sealed in May when American and its employees agreed to $1.8 billion US in annual labor cost reductions to keep the company out of bankruptcy. The concessions, including sharp pay cuts, were approved in contentious voting by unions representing flight attendants, pilots and ground workers.
A spokesman for American said service would not be affected by the layoffs. About 900 flight attendants were being transferred to St. Louis to replace the laid-off TWA workers, he said.
Former TWA employees bore the brunt of the layoffs because they lost in a power struggle between two union groups after American parent AMR Corp. bought TWA. The Association of Professional Flight Attendants, representing American''s workers, placed former TWA attendants at the bottom of the seniority list, making them the first to be hit by layoffs.
The former TWA flight attendants workers went to federal court in New York in an attempt to block the layoffs with a lawsuit against American, its former chief executive, TWA and the president of American''s flight attendants'' union. Judge Carol Bagley Amon ruled Monday against the former TWA workers.
AMR''s acquisition of TWA backfired when air travel declined - especially after the September 2001 terror attacks - and left American with too many empty seats on their planes.
Since then, American and most other major U.S. carriers have grounded dozens of jets to cut costs and cut the jobs of more than 100,000 pilots, flight attendants, mechanics and other workers.

 

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American Nearing Decisions On Its Network and Infrastructure
Airline Expected to Make Tough Decisions Concerning Routes, Facilities; Carrier Appreciates Cities'' Efforts to Offer Incentives
FORT WORTH, Texas, Jul 1, 2003 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- American Airlines today announced that it is nearing decisions that will strengthen its network and enhance the efficiency of its operations. The airline launched the review as part of its Turnaround Plan -- designed to ensure the carrier''s long-term competitiveness -- which President and CEO Gerard Arpey announced in May.
In conducting the review, the carrier has engaged in a series of discussions with business, community and political leadership in cities where it flies or has bases of operation. The talks have centered on the tough decisions American must make as it plots a course toward sustainable profitability.
American''s review of its network and infrastructure is prompted in part by its reduction in fleet size. The airline already has 57 fewer airplanes than a year ago. As previously announced, it will further reduce its fleet another 57 airplanes by next summer. By mid-2004, American''s fleet will be roughly the same size it was in March 2000.
"We sincerely appreciate, and are humbled by, the efforts communities are undertaking to have us remain a part of their future," Arpey said. "However, the reality is we will not be able to fly every nonstop route we fly today, nor will we be able to provide the same level of service in markets that cannot profitably support our current flight schedule. We are likewise examining our infrastructure needs across our system."
American''s network and infrastructure review includes examining everything from the performance of key routes and the space it occupies at major airports to the structure of its mid-continent hubs at Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth and St. Louis.
In addition, American is looking at the efficiency of its other major facilities. This includes reviewing the volume and nature of reservations calls that are distributed among its eight U.S. reservations offices in Cincinnati; Dallas/Fort Worth area (two offices); Hartford, Conn.; Honolulu; Raleigh/Durham, N.C.; St. Louis and Tucson, Ariz.
It also includes a thorough review of how the airline assigns maintenance work to its major maintenance bases at Fort Worth''s Alliance Airport; Kansas City, Mo.; and Tulsa, Okla.
In the near term, Arpey said the airline will continue talking with various cities and reviewing their proposals. However, the time is drawing near when American must make the decisions necessary to maintain its positive momentum.
"I anticipate that we will be announcing some of our decisions shortly," Arpey said. "We want to ensure we''ve given careful and due consideration to all of the options placed before us."