American Airlines’ financial performance has resulted in a loss in the first quarter of this year. In the three months up to 31^st March 2024, the company made a loss of 312 million US dollars. This is a significant margin given the fact that at the same time in the previous year, American Airlines’ financial performance resulted in a profit of 10 million US dollars. This also comes after a good performance at year-end in 2023 with the airline making a profit of 822 million US dollars, which was over 6 times higher than the profit in 2022 of 127 million US dollars.

American Airlines Financial Performance

American Airlines’ financial performance has not been easy since last year. In the third quarter, the company made a loss and even though the situation improved in the fourth quarter and became profitable, the company still made a lesser fourth-quarter profit than the same time in the previous year. The lesser profit occurred despite the cutbacks that were made which were particularly apparent when I flew by American Airlines whilst in the United States last year, a trip covered in a previous article. However, now this has also gone and the company is back in the red.

In terms of American Airlines’ revenue, however, the situation is more positive. In the three months up to 31^st March 2024, American Airlines’ financial performance resulted in a revenue of 12.57 billion US dollars which is 3.1% higher than the 12.189 billion US dollars made in the first quarter of 2023. This shows that the airline is more popular with customers, although the improvement in American Airlines’ revenue is relatively small. The fact that there has been an improvement in American Airlines’ revenue but a reduction in profitability to the extent of being loss-making when compared to the first quarter in 2023, does indicate that cost control is an issue.

Company Not Satisfied

The company’s Chief Executive Officer Robert Isom has stated that the company is not satisfied with American Airlines’ financial performance. However, he has said that American Airlines is on track to meet the company’s financial targets by the end of the year due to having a strong foundation in place. In the first quarter of 2024. The company has also reduced its debts in this quarter.

In terms of American Airlines’ revenue, the company has reported that this is at record levels. In addition, its operational performance (performance in terms of service delivery) has been portrayed in the same way in what has been described as the best performance in the company’s history. The company reports that its strong operational performance is due to its steadfast commitment to excellence and strong collaboration throughout the airline. Isom has also praised staff for this.

As one can see American Airlines has seen an improvement in its operational performance. Nevertheless, American Airlines’ financial performance is back in the red for this quarter. The previous two quarters were also difficult. The only upside in terms of American Airlines’ financial performance was the slight improvement in revenue when compared to the same time in the previous year. We have to wait to see how this progresses.