American Airlines reported it increased its share of
corporate business in the first quarter as total revenue increased 2 percent
year over year to $9.6 billion. Corporate business had "strong results across the
network" during the quarter, and that has continued for American this
month, president Robert Isom said in the carrier's earnings call. SVP of
revenue management Don Casey added that the quarter was a "high watermark
for us since the merger" in terms of corporate sales.
Isom also said the carrier will expand over the next two
months its new Basic Economy fare, which comes with heavy restrictions, including not allowing passengers to bring on bags that require overhead space,
beyond its first
10 launch markets. About half of travelers who see Basic Economy fares when
purchasing a ticket ultimately opt for the standard economy fare, Isom said. Many
corporations, however, are choosing to block Basic Economy fares from their travelers due
to the heavy restrictions.
Overall, American's traffic declined 1.5 percent year over
year as it trimmed capacity 1.1 percent. Load factor declined 0.4 percentage
points to 79.2 percent, and yield increased 2.4 percent.
American reported a net income of $234 million for the
quarter, down from $700 million in the first quarter of 2016. Operating
expenses were up 11.4 percent year over year, including a 36.2 percent jump in
fuel costs.