American Airlines Group Inc. (NASDAQ: AAL) today announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year 2021, which include:
Revenue of $9.4 billion in the fourth quarter was down 17% from the same period last year, owing to a 13% decrease in total available seat miles (ASMs) compared to the same period last year.
Net loss of $931 million, or ($1.44) per share, in the fourth quarter. Net loss for the fourth quarter was $921 million, or ($1.42) per share, excluding net exceptional items1.
$2.0 billion in net loss for the year, or ($3.09) per share. Net loss for the whole year was $5.4 billion, or ($8.38) per share, excluding net special items2.
In 2021, it safely transported more than 165 million passengers, more than any other airline in the United States.
The corporation ended the fourth quarter with a total accessible liquidity balance of $15.8 billion, the biggest year-end liquidity level in company history.
“As we close out the second year of operating in a global pandemic, we are incredibly proud of the American Airlines team,” said American’s Chairman and CEO Doug Parker.
“Over the past year, we have experienced periods of high travel demand countered by periods of decreased demand due to new COVID-19 variants.
This volatility has created the most challenging planning environment in the history of commercial aviation.
Yet the American team has delivered, growing back faster and further than any other U.S. airline to meet this unpredictable demand. Looking ahead, I’m excited about the future of American with Robert Isom as its new CEO.
While we still have work to do as the recovery from the pandemic continues, I have no doubt the best is yet to come for American.”
Despite flying substantially more than any other airline, American earned its highest performance in on-time arrivals, on-time departures, and completion factor since the pandemic for the whole year of 2021.
During the crucial year-end holiday season, American’s relative operating performance was very strong. In December, the company’s on-time performance was better than it had been in any December prior to the pandemic, and it outperformed its key competitors in these operational parameters.
Despite an increase in sick calls toward the end of the year due to the omicron variety, these outcomes were reached.
“We’re very proud of the way our team delivered throughout 2021,” said American’s President and incoming CEO Robert Isom. “Looking forward, our focus in 2022 will be to continue running a reliable airline, returning to profitability, and delivering on our long-term plan to deleverage the balance sheet.”
By concentrating on its three strategic objectives of creating a world-class customer experience, making culture a competitive advantage, and building American to survive forever, American is committed to growing its business and achieving profitability.
To create a world-class customer experience, American:
Expanded its Northeast Alliance (NEA) with JetBlue to provide reciprocal elite privileges to members of the AAdvantage® and TrueBlue Mosaic loyalty programmes when travelling on either airline.
This year, the NEA will provide even more benefits to customers, including the most flight options in dozens of cities from New York and Boston, lie-flat seats on all transcontinental flights, and a strong international network.
Introduced a reform of the AAdvantage loyalty programme, which goes into effect in 2022 and replaces convoluted elite qualification measures with an easy-to-understand point structure that allows users to gain status in many ways.
AAdvantage members can gain status by travelling, making purchases with an AAdvantage credit card, or spending with an AAdvantage partner starting this year.
Plans for a new 15,000-square-foot Admirals Club in Austin, Texas, were announced (AUS). The lounge will include more than 250 seats, making it Austin’s largest airport lounge. This year will be the start of construction.
For the fourth year in a row, The APEX Official Airline RatingsTM, Global Airline category, awarded the renowned Five Star rating. Customer feedback on the total trip experience is used to determine the winner.
As part of its growing collaboration with Qatar Airways, announced a new route between New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) and Doha, Qatar (DOH), which will begin this summer.
To make culture a competitive advantage, American:
In Fort Worth, Texas, the Robert L. Crandall Campus was inaugurated. Team members from across the system celebrated a ribbon-cutting ceremony with American’s retired Chairman and CEO Bob Crandall, along with their families and friends.
Since the onset of the epidemic, the city has welcomed its first graduating class of flight attendants. These new flight attendants had to wait over 600 days to start working for the airline.
Ensured that all members of the crew were COVID-19-vaccinated. Over 97 percent of the American team has provided proof of immunisation or a request for medical or religious accommodations.
To build American to thrive forever, American:
Early in December, the company announced its leadership succession plan. On March 31, Doug Parker will step down as CEO of American, and current President Robert Isom will take over. On the same day, Isom will join American’s board of directors, and Parker will remain chairman of the board.
When Isom takes over as CEO, American will choose a senior leadership team that will report to him.
Total available liquidity was $15.8 billion at the end of the fourth quarter.
For the first time, was included in the Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index as the only passenger airline.
The award recognises the airline’s continuous commitment to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) excellence, which includes reducing carbon emissions from operations, expanding diversity, equity, and inclusion, and disclosing ESG information on a regular and transparent basis.
Aemetis and I have finalised a new sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) offtake deal. The deal raises American’s total SAF commitment for the next decade to more than 120 million gallons, demonstrating the critical role SAF will play in the airline’s efforts to cut carbon emissions and meet its ambitious sustainability goals.
The company’s board of directors approved a tax benefit preservation plan to assist maintain the value of its net operating losses and other tax assets. The corporation believes that it has $17.2 billion in cumulative federal net operating loss carryforwards, which can be used to offset future corporate income tax liabilities in the United States.
Guidance and investor update
American will continue to match its forward capacity to the booking trends that have been seen. According to current trends, the business forecasts capacity to be down 8% to 10% in the first quarter of 2019 compared to the first quarter of 2018. American anticipates a 20 percent to 22 percent drop in total sales in the first quarter of 2019 compared to the same period last year.
Please see the company’s investor update, which was filed with this press release on Form 8-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission. This document will be available at aa.com/investorrelations as well.
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