American Airlines
In 1930, a union of more than eighty small airlines formed American Airlines. Two organizations created this new entity: Robertson Aircraft Corporation and Colonial Air Transport. Robertson had started in Missouri in 1921. Both groups merged into The Aviation Corporation in 1929. This holding company became an operating firm named American Airways the following year. New laws forced many airlines to reorganize in 1934. The corporation redid its routes into a connected system and changed its name to American Airlines. The airline fully developed its international business between 1970 and 2000. It purchased Trans World Airlines in 2001.
American Airlines played a direct role in designing the Douglas DC-3 aircraft. CEO C.R. Smith made a marathon telephone call to Donald Wills Douglas Sr. He persuaded a reluctant Douglas to design a sleeper aircraft based on the DC-2. The existing DC-2 cabin was too narrow for side-by-side berths. Douglas agreed to proceed only after Smith informed him of American's intention to purchase twenty aircraft. The prototype DST first flew on the 17th of December 1935. Its cabin was wider than previous models. A version with twenty-one seats received the designation DC-3. There was no prototype DC-3; the first built followed seven DSTs off the production line. American Airlines inaugurated passenger service on the 26th of June 1936. Simultaneous flights departed from Newark, New Jersey, and Chicago, Illinois. American also influenced the development of the DC-10 widebody aircraft. In 1966, American issued specifications to manufacturers for an aircraft smaller than the Boeing 747. McDonnell Douglas responded with the DC-10 trijet shortly after their merger. On the 19th of February 1968, George A. Spater announced American's intention to acquire the DC-10. American ordered twenty-five DC-10s in its first order. The DC-10 made its first flight on the 29th of August 1970. It entered commercial service on the 5th of August 1971, on a round-trip between Los Angeles and Chicago.
American currently operates ten hubs across the United States. Dallas Fort Worth International Airport serves as the airline's largest hub. Charlotte Douglas International Airport follows as the second-largest hub. Miami International Airport and Philadelphia International Airport share the third-place spot. Philadelphia acts as the premier connection point for flights between the Western U.S. and Europe. Miami remains the leading hub for travel to the Caribbean, South America, and Latin America. Chicago-O'Hare functions as the Midwest hub. Los Angeles serves as the West Coast and secondary transpacific gateway. New York-JFK acts as a secondary transatlantic hub serving high-demand local traffic. New York-LaGuardia handles domestic flights with few exceptions. Phoenix-Sky Harbor covers the southwestern region. Washington-National serves as the hub for the capital of the United States. The airline serves more than two hundred million passengers annually. It averages more than five hundred thousand daily flights to nearly three hundred fifty destinations in forty-eight countries.
In 2011, American Airlines' parent company AMR Corporation filed for bankruptcy protection due to an industry downturn. In 2013, American Airlines merged with US Airways but kept the American Airlines name. This combination resulted in the creation of the largest airline in the United States and ultimately the world. The new company consolidated its corporate headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas. They abandoned the US Airways headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona. As of 2015, American Airlines was the corporation with the most significant presence in Fort Worth. In December 2023, the company was added to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index. In September 2024, it was removed from the S&P 500 index and placed into the S&P MidCap 400. The market capitalization stood at about eleven billion dollars as of 2024.
Flagship First is American's international and transcontinental first class product. It is offered only on Boeing 777-300ERs and select Airbus A321s designated A321T. The seats are fully lie-flat and offer direct aisle access. Only one seat exists on each side of the aisle in each row. Flagship Business is available on all Boeing 777-200ERs, Boeing 777-300ERs, Boeing 787-8s, and Boeing 787-9s. All Flagship Business seats are fully lie-flat. Premium Economy debuted on the airline's Boeing 787-9s in late 2016. This product made American Airlines the first U.S. carrier to offer a four-cabin aircraft. Main Cabin Extra seats have additional pitch and complimentary alcoholic beverages. Basic Economy consists of a Main Cabin ticket with numerous restrictions including no upgrades or refunds. In May 2017, American announced it would add more seats to some Boeing 737 MAX 8 jets. They reduced overall legroom in the basic economy class. The last three rows lost inches going from thirty-one to twenty-nine inches.
In 1931, an employee named Goodrich Murphy designed the AA logo as an entry in a contest. The eagle was copied from a Scottish hotel brochure. The initial logo contained large red letters enclosed in a double red and white circle against a blue background. The logo was modified for the first time in 1946. It eliminated the red and white circles and made the eagle more prominent. The visual identity updated again in 1962 with a lighter red accent color. A medium grey replaced the grayish dark blue. In 1968, Massimo Vignelli created a new identity program under Unimark. A blue stylized bird placed between Unimark's AA symbols endured until 2013. On the 17th of January 2013, American launched a new rebranding campaign dubbed A New American. This included a new logo featuring elements of the 1967 design. Before then, American had been the only major U.S. airline to leave most aircraft surfaces unpainted. C.R. Smith refused to use liveries involving painting the entire plane. Robert Crandall later justified the natural metal finish by noting it reduced weight and saved fuel costs. The current design features an abstract American flag on the tail along with a silver-painted fuselage.
The Allied Pilots Association represents nearly fifteen thousand American Airlines pilots. It was created in 1963 after pilots left the Air Line Pilots Association. Flight attendants are represented by the Association of Professional Flight Attendants. The Transport Workers Union-International Association of Machinists alliance represents fleet service agents and mechanics. In 1999, American Airlines sued Allied Pilot's Association for forty-five point five million dollars over strike damages. This was one of the largest fines ever levied against a trade union. In August 2018, flight attendants picketed headquarters over changes to sick day policies. They complained about exposure to ill passengers and toxic cabin air. On the 11th of April 2007, toxic smoke leaked into the cabin during American Airlines Flight 843. A flight attendant filed a lawsuit stating she suffered neurotoxic disorder from fume exposure. She settled with Boeing in 2011. In January 2017, seven flight attendants were hospitalized after detecting a strange odor on Flight 1896. Between October 1993 and July 1998, American Airlines violated the Clean Air Act using high-sulfur fuel at ten major airports.
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Common questions
When was American Airlines formed and by which organizations?
American Airlines was formed in 1930 through a union of Robertson Aircraft Corporation and Colonial Air Transport. These two groups had previously merged into The Aviation Corporation in 1929 before reorganizing as American Airways.
What aircraft did American Airlines help design and when did the DC-3 first fly?
American Airlines played a direct role in designing the Douglas DC-3 aircraft after CEO C.R. Smith persuaded Donald Wills Douglas Sr. to create a sleeper version. The prototype DST first flew on the 17th of December 1935, followed by passenger service inauguration on the 26th of June 1936.
Which cities host the largest hubs for American Airlines today?
Dallas Fort Worth International Airport serves as the airline's largest hub while Charlotte Douglas International Airport follows as the second-largest. Miami International Airport and Philadelphia International Airport share the third-place spot with Chicago-O'Hare functioning as the Midwest hub.
Did American Airlines merge with US Airways and what happened to its headquarters location?
American Airlines merged with US Airways in 2013 but kept the American Airlines name resulting in the creation of the largest airline in the United States. The new company consolidated its corporate headquarters in Fort Worth Texas and abandoned the US Airways headquarters in Phoenix Arizona.
When was the current American Airlines logo launched and what does it feature?
On the 17th of January 2013 American launched a new rebranding campaign dubbed A New American which included a new logo featuring elements of the 1967 design. The current design features an abstract American flag on the tail along with a silver-painted fuselage.