American Airlines Set a Revenue Record and Still Expects to Lose Money This Year. Fuel Is the Reason.
American Airlines reported record third-quarter revenue of $16.3 billion but lost $269 million and now expects a full-year loss because of soaring fuel costs.
The facts come first below. My opinion follows in the section marked as opinion.
American Airlines took in more money last quarter than in any third quarter in its history, and it still lost money. On Oct. 22 the Fort Worth-based carrier said it now expects to lose between $1 and $1.60 a share on an adjusted basis for all of 2026. In July it had forecast anything from earnings of 65 cents a share to a loss of 65 cents, CNBC reported. Its stock fell about 4% in premarket trading that morning.
The numbers
Revenue for the third quarter was $16.3 billion, up 19.3% from a year earlier. American reported a net loss of $269 million, or 41 cents a share, compared with a loss of $114 million a year ago. Fuel was the main problem. The airline paid an average of $3.85 a gallon for jet fuel in the quarter, and its fuel bill rose $1.9 billion, or 67.5%, according to the company's earnings release.
The fourth quarter looks harder still. Based on fuel futures as of Oct. 19, American expects to pay about $4.70 a gallon, which it says is "nearly double the price paid in the fourth quarter of 2025." That would add about $2.8 billion in fuel costs compared with a year earlier. The company forecast a fourth-quarter adjusted loss of 50 cents to $1.10 a share, and it said it expects network growth in 2027 to slow from 2026 levels, the release said.
American is not alone. It is the fourth major U.S. carrier to cut its 2026 forecast this month because of the jump in jet fuel since the start of the Iran war, after Delta, United and Southwest. Jet fuel is airlines' biggest cost after labor, and rising fuel prices have pushed airfares up more than 20% from last year, CNBC reported.
What the company says
"American delivered record third-quarter revenue and the strongest year-over-year revenue growth in my career, with premium performance leading the way," CEO Robert Isom said. "While historically high fuel prices significantly impacted our financial results, our focus remains on restoring profitability and building a stronger American for the long term," he added in the release.
Premium seats are central to the plan. Premium revenue rose 22.9% in the quarter, and premium products now bring in roughly half of American's ticket revenue on about 30% of its seats. The company expects premium seats on its narrowbody jets to rise to 40% in the coming years, it said. Isom has been under pressure to boost profits at an airline that has "dramatically trailed profitable rivals Delta and United," CNBC noted.
Opinion: Count the cost, and do not forget the folks in the back
There is no villain in a fuel bill. American did not start a war, and no airline can wish jet fuel back to last year's price. To its credit, the company kept its unit costs in check and is telling investors the truth about what is coming. That kind of candor is worth something.
But the numbers tell a story about who is carrying the load. Fares are up more than 20%. The airline's own release shows half its ticket revenue coming from about 30% of its seats, and the plan is to add more of those seats. That may be good business. It also means the family flying home for Thanksgiving in the main cabin is paying more for a smaller share of the plane.
Scripture puts it simply: "For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?" American now has $11.8 billion in available liquidity, but it still lost money in a record quarter. Slowing growth next year is a sensible way of counting the cost. Promising record after record while the bottom line stays red is not.
For ordinary travelers, the lesson is the same one every household budget teaches. Book holiday trips early, compare fares, and do not assume prices will come down soon. "Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look well to thy herds." Wise families, like wise companies, plan for the bill they can see coming.
For another look at how big companies are changing the jobs picture, read Amazon's Middletown Delaware Expansion: Robots, Jobs and Traffic.
