Employees Expected to ‘Bear the Burden’ of American Airlines Bankruptcy

After 81 years of flying, American Airlines landed in federal bankruptcy court in New York City yesterday.  The last of the legacy airlines to file for Chapter 11 following 9/11, the beleaguered company cited nearly $30 billion in debt, just under $25 billion in assets, and $4 billion in cash reserves as part of the decision to file for protection against its creditors.

Because this is the seventh largest bankruptcy in U.S. history by number of employees, it is widely anticipated that AA will trim labor costs by shedding jobs.  A large question also hangs over the security of American employee pensions.  Watch Judy Woodruff  discuss the contributing factors of the filing and its pending aftermath with Ben Mutzabaugh of USA Today on PBSNewsHour.

According to a public service announcement on its website, American Airlines is flying normal schedules and conducting business as usual worldwide.  Additional information about the Chapter 11 reorganization is available at www.aa.com/restructuring.

"Brace yourselves...it's gonna be a rough landing!"