American Shifts Airbus Jets to U.S., Caribbean

AMR Corp.’s American Airlines is moving 10 Airbus A300 jetliners from transatlantic routes to flights in the U.S. and Caribbean, replacing the planes with longer-range Boeing Co. aircraft.

The move comes about 10 weeks after an American A300 crashed in New York and after some pilots called for the company to ground its 34 A300s until the cause is determined. The change is part of a plan created last year and isn’t related to the accident or safety concerns, American spokesman John Hotard said.

Concern that the aircraft may be unsafe prompted some pilots to transfer from A300s, union spokesman Capt. Sam Mayer said.

Some A300 pilots want to be sure that the Nov. 12 crash wasn’t caused by a defect that could exist in other A300s.

American, the largest airline, said in May that it would use Boeing 767 and 777 aircraft to replace A300s flying across the Atlantic. Ten A300s now used on those flights are better suited to flights within the U.S. and to the Caribbean, the company said.

Shares of Fort Worth-based AMR fell 5 cents to $25.02 on the NYSE.