American Airlines Swot Analysis Paper

Delta Airlines is one of the leading airline industries in the market based on on-time performance, revenue per available seat, customer satisfaction, and it is well positioned in taking advantage of the new positive economic outlook for the airline industry. It is a domestic Airline carrier that provides passengers and cargo services throughout the US and other international destinations. Some of its hubs are in Atlanta, Detroit, Minneapolis, Amsterdam, JFK and Tokyo-Narita as well as in partnering with the existing regional airlines. Currently, the assets of Delta Airline are valued $54,252 million and the composition can be divided into three main groups including PPE (Property, Plant, and Equipment), Current Assets and other Assets (Luo, 2014).

American Airlines has some key operational and financial strengths that keeps it ahead of its competitors in the airline industry.

Entrepreneur Robert Deluce introduced Porter Airlines in 2006 aiming to create a higher value experience for its customers compared to other major players and competitors in the Canadian airline industry such as Air Canada and West Jet. The brand image is designed to provide upscale and refined service to its customers, giving the sense of traveling in first class with free amenities that competitors provide at very high prices such as meals, beverages, wine, etc.

"Today, we are glad to dispatch the new American Airlines – a head worldwide transporter very much prepared to contend and win against the best on the planet," said Tom Horton, Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer of American Airlines. "Together, we will be surprisingly better situated to convey for the majority of our partners, including our clients, individuals, speculators, accomplices, and the numerous groups we

American Airlines, Inc. (AA) is a major airline of the United States. It is the world's largest airline in regards to accumulated passenger miles. American Airlines took off on April 15, 1926 when Charles Lindbergh flew a bag of mail from Chicago to St. Luis in a DH-4 biplane. A year later the first passenger flight flew from Boston to New York, heralding the real first passenger airplane travel by American Airlines. A subsidiary of AMR Corporation, the head quarters of American Airlines is in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. American operates scheduled flights throughout the United States and flights to Canada, Latin America, the Caribbean, Europe, Japan, the

| Weakness * The number of cancelling flights is a little high * The customer service is bad because in some occasion the customer can’t found the delta representative in the airport. * Lack of online presence * In some aircrafts the seats are uncomfortable and narrow

For over eighty-seven years, American Airlines has served both the flying public and the communities they call home. The airline adapted to changes in the marketplace, developed new technologies to improve air travel, responded to adversity and served as a bridge between cultures and people from every corner of the globe. American Airlines successfully completed new agreements and contracts with labor unions, restructured debt and negotiated more favorable lease and supplier contracts. These improvements contributed to a record-breaking revenue performance of $24.9 billion in 2012.

The official website of the airlines states, “The new American has the breadth and capabilities to compete more effectively and profitably than ever in the global marketplace.” The merger has made them grow and it has also enhanced their shareholder value through a wider system. They have strategically enabled faster connections and a blend of modern aircraft that is capable of attracting more customers. “In 2014, we reported record quarterly and annual profits. We were also able to deliver on our goal of generating returns for our investors by repurchasing $1 billion in shares and paying a quarterly cash dividend—the first since 1980. The early successes of our merger earned us Airfinance Journal’s Overall Deal of the Year.” (Anonymous, n.d.). In 2014, the Airlines saw financial gains like never before after they went bankrupt. They recorded “revenues of $42.7 billion, recorded operating profit of $4.2 billion; net income of $2.9 billion, had $1 billion share repurchase program completed, $ billion share purchase program authorized (announced January 2015), significant stock price appreciation, first dividend since 1980.” (Anonymous,

American Airlines is the largest the airline company in the world measured by fleet size, revenue, number of destinations served, and scheduled passenger miles flown. Operating a total of 6.700 flights daily, while utilizing over 900 aircrafts, American flies to roughly 350 destinations in 50 countries. Employing over 100,000 employees worldwide, American cites much of its success from its elite and talented workforce. However, American has been forced to overcome significant obstacles since its merger with US Airways in 2013. Consequently, the merger has been slated as one of the most successful mergers in US History. Though proven arduous, their continued hyper-focus and commitment to all elements of its corporate strategy and vision ensured

After watching the CNBC special about American Airlines and a week inside their business I noticed several interesting things. Though it was dated few years ago many of the issues are still the same. They had several Revenue drivers; Cargo income, excess baggage fees, last minute departure fees, Postal cartage, and miscellaneous charges for meals, drinks, and accessories. These are not needed but sometimes are needed on certain longer flights. They provide an extra income that may just keep a transcontinental flight from losing money.

American Airlines throughout its 90 year existence has been constantly linked to aviation greatness. From its first flight by the legendary Charles Lindbergh, to its 2015 ranking as the “World’s Most Profitable Airline.” American Airlines currently boasts the largest aircraft fleet in the industry with over 900 aircraft and during 2015 that fleet carried a nation leading 146 million enplaned passengers. In the following we will look at how a small mail carrier evolved and survived amongst its competitors to become one of the top airlines in the world.

Southwest Airlines uses market development, advertising, and integration strategies at the corporate level. For their market development strategy, they acquired slots in Long Beach, California, and flights resumed between the United States and Cuba. Southwest acted quickly to these opportunities and launched services to Long Beach Airport, Varadero, Cuba, Havana, Cuba; and Santa Clara, Cuba. Now, Southwest serves Long Beach with short-haul flights in California and Cuba from Ft. Lauderdale and Tampa. They also launched service from Los Angeles International Airport to Cancun, Puerto Vallarta, and Los Cabos, Mexico. Additional routes and frequencies within their existing network rounded out the balance of their expansion in 2016.

In recent years, the U.S. airline industry has been restructured and consolidated into a number of mergers. By 2014, the top 6 airlines controlled 94% of domestic market share by available seat miles. Mergers in the U.S. airline industry reduce competition and increase efficiency in resource utilization. It also benefits customers with a wider range of coverage with more routes and destinations. It was inevitable for American Airline to become a merger. After 2005, when the top airlines merged (Delta with Northwest and United with Continental), American was starting to lose its market share to its peers. Competitors took advantage of enlarged capacities and geographic coverage, while America was struggling to maintain its unit revenue. American’s

US Airways completed a merger in December 2013 . This merger provided much needed cash infusion into American Airlines, enabling it to emergency from

American Airlines was the United States’ largest carrier in 1992 with a fleet of 622 jet aircraft, flying 2,450 flights daily to 182 locations, as well as new innovative technology and programs. American Airlines was the first to introduce a computerized airline reservation system called Sabre, “Super Saver” fares and frequent flier programs. Regardless of the innovations, American Airlines and the airline industry was still not operating as profitably or providing customer satisfaction the way it should have in 1992. In 1991, As a result of a recession and the Gulf War, demand for air travel fell, fare wars came about, and the airlines