Image American Airlines said it expected to fly about about 8 to 10 percent fewer passengers in the first three months of this year compared with the same period in 2019.Credit…Mike Blake/ReutersAmerican Airlines lost $931 million in the final three months of last year, as the Omicron variant of the coronavirus has pushed back the industry’s rebound.After a year of recovery punctuated by setbacks, airlines are now focused on returning to profitability in 2022. Industry executives are hoping for a robust spring and summer driven by rebounds in corporate and international travel.“Over the past year, we have experienced periods of high travel demand countered by periods of decreased demand due to new Covid-19 variants,” American’s chief executive, Doug Parker, said in a statement. “This volatility has created the most challenging planning environment in the history of commercial aviation.”Omicron forced airline workers to call in sick at record rates over the holidays, compounding problems caused by winter storms and contributing to tens of thousands of cancellations during one of the year’s busiest travel periods. But American notably performed better over that period than its peers.Over the two weeks starting on Dec. 25, American canceled just under 1,500 flights, compared with more than 4,300 at Southwest Airlines, more than 2,500 for United Airlines and more than 2,000 for Delta Air Lines. The cancellations represented 4 percent of American’s schedule, versus 9 percent of Southwest’s, 8 percent of United’s and 5 percent of Delta’s.Omicron will continue to weigh on demand in January and February, American said. The airline expects capacity, as measured by seats sold and distance flown, to be about 8 …
