American Airlines said it delivered a “strong operational performance” for its customers during the winter holiday travel period, cancelling the fewest flights among the major carriers while operating significantly more on-time flights than last year’s holiday period.
The airline was able to achieve this strong performance despite the weather in many parts of the country and a significant volume of non-scheduled, non-air carrier operations that resulted in increased air traffic control delays.
David Seymour, American’s chief operating officer, said: “When customers purchase tickets on American, they place their trust in us to deliver a safe and reliable operation, and I’m proud to say that thanks to the hard work of our team members, we delivered on that commitment despite holiday headwinds, including some challenging weather and increased air traffic control congestion.
“We appreciate our federal partners, the Federal Aviation Administration, Transportation Security Administration and US Customs and Border Protection, for their critical roles in making this holiday travel period a success.”
Since 20 December, American Airlines welcomed nearly 7.8mn passengers across more than 71,000 flights. The carrier’s on-time departure and arrival performance also improved by around 15 per cent compared to 2022’s holiday period.
Further, the carrier reported a 66 per cent improvement in its handling measures for mishandled baggage compared to the 2022 holiday period.
