Sun Belt Strategy

American Airlines' Sun Belt Strategy Reflects Constraints More Than Choice, Experts Say

Insiders argue American Airlines has reversed disastrous sales and distribution mistake while still running the same old strategy that left it weak in major markets. That critique is partly right, but incomplete: American's Sun Belt focus was less a fresh strategic choice than the result of years of retreat from competition, premature aircraft retirements, slot and gate constraints, and a long-running failure to value the markets that drive loyalty and credit card spend.