American Eagle President Also Announced

Senior managers for the airline that will be the result of the proposed merger of US Airways and American Airlines were announced this week by senior vice president Robert Isom.

In a letter to employees, Isom said that Kerry Hester has been named as SVP, Customer Experience for the new American Airlines. "Kerry will coordinate the overall customer experience to ensure that we deliver reliability and convenience before, during, and after travel," Isom said in the letter, which was posted online by the Dallas Morning News. "She will oversee our customer strategy to provide an efficient product to employees and customers, and manage an effective service recovery program for when things go wrong. Kerry is currently US Airways SVP, Customer Experience. Reporting to Kerry are Customer Planning, Reservations, and Airport Customer Service."

Isom also named a list of senior vice presidents for several regional divisions, and vice presidents for such areas as InFlight Services, and Gateways and Hub Coordination.

Jim Butler was named President of the cargo division. "Jim will be responsible for all aspects of the global cargo business. Jim is currently American Airlines Managing Director, Commercial Planning and Performance," Isom said. Kenji Hashimoto is the new SVP, Regional Carriers. He will have responsibility for all regional carrier flying, including wholly owned subsidiaries American Eagle Airlines, PSA and Piedmont and regional affiliates that operate as Eagle and US Airways Express. Hashimoto is currently American Airlines President, Cargo.

At the same time, American Eagle president and CEO Dan Garton sent a letter announcing Pedro Fábregas as the new president of American Eagle Airlines. Fábregas is currently Senior Vice President of Customer Services at American Eagle. "The growth of our ground handling business under Pedro’s leadership has been phenomenal," Garton said in his letter. "Our ground handling business with other airlines has more than doubled since 2012, and we have been able to add more than 1,600 new team members since he assumed this role in 2011. These numbers are impressive, but more impressive are the opportunities for growth he has created for the people of American Eagle." Garton will be leaving the company when the merger is completed.

The merger is expected to be finalized in late summer.

FMI: www.aa.com/newamerican