Fort Worth-based American Airlines reported financial results from the fourth quarter of 2022 Thursday, saying it turned a profit of $803 million in the fourth quarter and $127 million for the full year.
"The results the American Airlines team produced in 2022 and what we are projecting in 2023 are proof positive the actions we have taken in recent years have put us in a position of strength and allowed us to take full advantage of the recovery," said Chief Executive Robert Isom.
This was American's first full year of profit since 2019, and Isom says the airline had better results in the fourth quarter of 2022 than the last three months of 2019.
Isom says American has $12 billion in cash on hand and prepaid $1.2 billion on a loan in the fourth quarter. He says the company remains on pace to pay $15 billion in debt through 2025.
In 2023, he said American will take delivery of 23 new jets and is also taking some out of storage to meet capacity goals.
"Look, American's in a position of strength, especially as we look at coming out of the pandemic," Isom said. "We're poised to recover."
Isom says 900 pilots retired in 2022, and he expects 900 more to leave the airline in 2023, but he said increased hiring at regional carriers will make up the difference. Isom said he expects American to hire 2,000 pilots in 2023. He said American took a "monumental step" in 2022 by increasing pay for regional pilots.
The Allied Pilots Association rejected a contract offer from American in November. The Association of Professional Flight Attendants' contract became negotiable in 2019. Flight attendants picketed at eleven airports, including DFW, this week, saying they are "flying more hours than they've ever had to in the past."
APFA said schedules are now built with limited rest periods which gives the airline little flexibility when adjusting the schedule due to weather.
American has said it "remains committed to reaching a contract that’s good for our flight attendants and our airline."
Chief Commercial Officer Vasu Raja said trends show continued demand, but he says American is seeing changes in customer behavior. He says both business and vacation passengers are buying tickets further ahead of time, and he says they are more likely to buy "higher value fare products."
"We have been really encouraged by demand trends," he said. "Historically, the first three weeks coming out of a holiday season are our strongest sales weeks. These first three weeks have been the strongest weeks we've since the post-merger airline."
Raja said people are more likely to buy tickets directly from American, with 60% of tickets bought through its website or app instead of using a third party.
Isom said American has also invested in software that allows the airline to run more efficiently. Because of that software, he says pilots and crew members were in place during the snow and ice storm in December, and American completed a larger percentage of flights than any other major airline.
"We're really proud of the operating performance, but I'll tell you it's something we've been working on a long time," he said. "We spent a tremendous amount time investing in technology to make sure we can identify where our crews, our planes and our maintenance requirements are."
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