The chief executive at American Airlines has announced he will retire at the end of March, 2022. Doug Parker's career spans several airlines that have since merged with American.
Parker became chief executive of America West in 2001. He oversaw a merger with U.S. Airways in 2003 and then U.S. Airways' merger with American in 2013.
American had declared bankruptcy in 2011, and the merged airline became the biggest in the world.
Parker says current American Airlines President Robert Isom will take control in March 2022.
"We've prepared for this leadership succession for several years, and, indeed, if not for the pandemic, this transition would likely have occurred even sooner," Parker said in a video American posted on Youtube.
Parker says air travel has been recovering from the pandemic, and American is in position to succeed long-term.
In its third quarter earnings statement, American reported a $169 million profit but would have reported a loss if not for federal payroll support.
American said revenue had increased 20% from the second quarter. The airline reported $8 billion in passenger revenue, which was 25% lower than the third quarter of 2019 but almost three times the amount of revenue generated in the third quarter of 2020.
"With our industry and our airline well on the way to recovery, I'm confident now is the right time for this transition," he says. "We expect the transition to be seamless for our team and our customers."
"We are navigating the pandemic well, and we are poised to continue leading the industry as travel rebounds," Isom, the current president and incoming CEO, says.
Isom says American remains the biggest airline in the world and has the youngest fleet among domestic carriers.
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