AMR Corporation ,
the parent company of American Airlines, today reported a net loss
of $162 million for the first quarter, or $1.00 per share, which included
a benefit of $69 million related to certain excise tax refunds. Without
this tax credit, AMR would have recorded a net loss of $230 million, or
$1.43 per share. This compares to a loss of $166 million, or $1.03 per
share, in the first quarter last year. “In many ways, the story for the first quarter is very similar to what we
have seen the past several quarters,” said AMR Chairman and CEO Gerard
Arpey. “The combination of extraordinarily high fuel prices and low fares
continues to take a heavy financial toll.” Arpey pointed out that because
of higher fuel prices, excluding the tax credit received this quarter, the
company paid $346 million more for fuel during the first quarter of 2005
than it did during the same period the year before.

“On the other hand,” Arpey said, “while the financial environment remains
very difficult, we are nonetheless performing well in many other important
areas. Our employee and aircraft productivity are at historically high
levels, more customers are choosing American, and our on-time performance
has improved significantly.”
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