It will soon fall to Robert Isom, a longtime American Airlines Group Inc. executive, to chart a new course for the world’s largest airline, The Wall Street Journal reported. Isom will take the reins at American as CEO on March 31 after Doug Parker, who pieced American together through blockbuster deals to form the world’s largest airline by traffic, retires. Isom will have to address a number of problems. The airline’s operation, which he oversaw, has lagged behind competitors in recent years. Relations with labor unions have been contentious. Before the pandemic, investors were growing restive as the airline’s share performance flagged. The pandemic created new challenges. American already had more debt than rivals after refreshing its fleet, then piled on billions more to survive last year, and in its race to ramp back up and capture growing travel demand this year, American has stumbled at times, resulting in thousands of canceled flights, angering passengers and crews. Isom has told employees that he isn’t looking to change the airline’s strategic direction, but will work to improve its operation and return the airline to profitability. Industry observers have expected that Isom would become CEO; the only question was when. American’s shares have climbed 15.2% this year — more than many rivals — although airline stocks have been battered in recent weeks by concerns over the new Omicron variant of COVID-19. Isom said American is positioned to thrive as demand returns. The airline’s fleet of relatively young planes and a more domestic-focused network could give it a boost as rivals have also taken on more debt and faced their own struggles ramping up, analysts have said.
