An American Eagle Bombardier CRJ-900ER aircraft seen at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.
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american airlines Said it would go down on Saturday Mesa Air For some regional flights, it has raised concerns about partner financial and operational issues, issues related to rising costs, and industry issues. pilot shortage.
Derek Carr, American’s chief financial officer and president of American’s regional brand American Eagle, said in a staff note seen by CNBC, “As a result, Mesa’s ability to become a trusted partner to American in the future. I am concerned about,” he said. Saturday. “American Airlines and Mesa agree that the best way to address these concerns is to terminate the contract.”
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American Airlines’ final Mesa flight is scheduled for April 3, but American Airlines has significantly cut its Mesa flights in March, Kerr said in a memo.
Now, Arizona-based Mesa says, “All of our CRJ900 flights united airlines“Mesa CEO Jonathan Ornstein said in a note to staff Saturday seen by CNBC.
United declined to comment.
Major airlines such as American and United delta airlines It has regular contracts with regional airlines and operates many short-haul routes, accounting for about half of all departures, depending on the airline.
The crux of the problem stems from the region’s worst pilot shortage, which has gotten worse since travel demand rebounded after the pandemic travel slump.Mesa and other regional airlines raised wages significantly to attract and retain aviators. American raised wages at its regional subsidiaries.
Mesa’s CEO told employees that American Airlines was penalized for refusing to pay high pilot fees to its partners in other regions and failing to meet its pre-Covid contractual obligations, he added.
“With this in mind, we negotiated a winddown with American and entered into a new agreement with United to transition all CRJ900s currently operated by American Eagle to United Express,” Mesaa Ornstein said. I am happy to announce what we are doing.” .
American did not comment on Mesa’s memo to staff.
Mesa posted a net loss of about $67 million in the nine months ended June 30, according to its securities report. Last week, the airline postponed its quarterly earnings report.
According to the company’s latest annual report, published a year ago, as of September 30, 2021, approximately 45% of Mesa’s revenue came from American and 52% from United. DHL also flies to Mesa.
American Airlines said the deal with Mesa primarily relates to hubs at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.
American Airlines plans to concentrate flights on wholly-owned regional subsidiaries such as Envoy and PSA, as well as independent regional carriers. sky westAir Wisconsin, which also flies under the American Eagle brand, plans to begin the contract sooner than originally planned, Kerr said.
“The flights previously performed by Mesa will be backfilled by these high quality regional airlines and our mainline business so that we can continue to build and serve the best global network for our customers. will be,” writes Carr.
