7.23.26 – 2Q 2026 Earnings: Modest Profit, Major Competitive Gap

2Q 2026 Earnings: Modest Profit, Major Competitive Gap

Thursday, July 23, 2026

This morning, American Airlines reported a quarterly profit, but it remains well behind its premium competitors. While Delta and United continue to post strong financial results despite soaring fuel costs, American continues to trail by a significant margin. Our competitors continue to set the standard while American struggles to play catch-up.

While we are encouraged by recent investments in our airline, the responsibility for changing this trajectory ultimately rests with the American Airlines Board of Directors. The Board must confront this reality, hold leadership accountable for these persistent shortcomings, and take decisive action to restore American’s competitive position.

Our employees, our customers, and our shareholders deserve leadership that can return this airline to industry-leading operational and financial performance.

APFA Continues to Hold Management Accountable

APFA continues to fight on multiple fronts to protect Flight Attendants, our customers, and the future of this airline. These issues include, but are not limited to:

• Excessive Flight Attendant removals for unnecessary management meetings that waste valuable company resources and create unnecessary costs at a time when American should be focused on financial discipline, operational reliability, and investing in the people who drive this airline’s success.
• Reduced minimum staffing on the Boeing 787-9P, a troubling industry trend, allowing widebody aircraft to operate without a trained Flight Attendant assigned to every door exit—creating concerns for safety and emergency readiness.
• Toxic onboard fume events that impact Flight Attendants and passengers, prompting increased attention from federal lawmakers and the introduction of the Safe Air on Airplanes Act to address this longstanding safety issue.
• Ongoing London Heathrow catering failures that force Flight Attendants to perform the work of caterers, cleaners, and problem-solvers for company failures—without proper support, resources, or compensation, while making the premium customer experience American promises even harder to deliver.
  

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American’s continued financial underperformance is not just a corporate issue; it directly impacts Flight Attendants through job security, profit sharing, and future growth opportunities. APFA will continue holding leadership accountable at every level, from CEO Robert Isom and the decisions shaping this airline’s direction to Vice President of Inflight Bobbi Wells and the failing management structure implemented within Inflight.

The financial gap with our premium competitors, ongoing operational failures, and culture of excessive discipline and micromanagement are the result of leadership choices—and those choices must be addressed.

In Solidarity,