Executive reorganization at American Airlines ongoing

FORT WORTH, TX – American Airlines, a subsidiary of AMR Corporation, today announced today several executive reshufflings. Kurt Stache will assume the role of vice president-international, and Derek DeCross will replace Stache as vice president and general sales manager. In addition, Maya Leibman will take over the position of president-AAdvantage.

Stache will be based in London and will be responsible for American’s business in the Atlantic and Pacific regions. He will report to Tom Horton, president of AMR and American. He has served in numerous leadership roles at American, including at AAdvantage and in revenue management, since joining the company 15 years ago.

DeCross will be responsible for leading American’s sales team and for developing all sales policies worldwide. In his new role, he will also lead American’s relationships with corporate accounts and travel agencies. He joined American in 1996 and has held positions in revenue management, sales, interactive marketing, and finance.

As president of AAdvantage, Leibman will be responsible for American’s frequent flyer program that has more than 62 million members and more than 700 award destinations across the globe. She joined American in 1994 and has held leadership positions in revenue management, marketing, and information technology.

DeCross and Leibman will report to Virasb Vahidi, American’s chief commercial officer.

In these positions, Stache, DeCross, and Leibman will play important roles in implementing American’s pending joint ventures with British Airways and Iberia across the Atlantic and with Japan Airlines across the Pacific.

“We are pleased to have Kurt, Derek, and Maya leading key elements of our global business, especially as we implement our joint business with British Airways and Iberia on the Atlantic and plan for a similar partnership with Japan Airlines on the Pacific,” said Horton. “These stronger partnerships, as well as our own network plans both in our US cornerstone markets and internationally, represent important opportunities for our company. This energetic and talented group of leaders will help ensure that we leverage these opportunities to the great benefit of our customers, our people, and our shareholders.”