TEMPE, Ariz., April 23, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- US Airways Group, Inc. (NYSE: LCC) today reported its first quarter 2013 financial results. For the first quarter 2013, net profit excluding net special items was a record $55 million, or $0.31 per diluted share. Net loss excluding net special items for the first quarter 2012 was $22 million, or ($0.13) per share.

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On a GAAP basis, the Company reported a net profit of $44 million for its first quarter 2013, or $0.26 per diluted share, compared to a net profit of $48 million, or $0.28 per diluted share, for the same period in 2012. See the accompanying notes in the Financial Tables section of this press release for a reconciliation of GAAP financial information to non-GAAP financial information.

US Airways Group, Inc. Chairman and CEO Doug Parker stated, "We are extremely pleased to produce these record first quarter results. Our 32,000 hard-working team members continue to run a safe and reliable airline for our customers. These outstanding results are the product of their efforts and provide a solid foundation as we plan for combining with American Airlines.

"Looking forward, our integration planning work with American is going well and we continue to expect that the merger will close in the third quarter of this year. The entire US Airways team is looking forward to working with our colleagues at American to build the premier global airline."

Revenue and Cost Comparisons

A strong demand environment and record passenger load factors led to record revenue performance. Total revenues in the first quarter were $3.4 billion, up 3.5 percent versus the first quarter 2012 on a 1.3 percent increase in total available seat miles (ASMs). Total revenue per ASM was a record 15.78 cents, up 2.2 percent versus the same period last year, driven by a 2.4 point increase in passenger load factor.

Total operating expenses in the first quarter were $3.3 billion, up 2.2 percent over the same period last year. Mainline cost per available seat mile (CASM) was 13.82 cents, up 1.8 percent on a 1.4 percent increase in mainline ASMs. Excluding special items, fuel and profit sharing, mainline CASM was 8.77 cents, up 0.7 percent versus the same period last year. Express CASM excluding special items and fuel was 15.12 cents, down 1.3 percent on a 0.8 percent increase in ASMs.

Liquidity

As of March 31, 2013, the Company had $2.9 billion in total cash and investments, of which $352 million was restricted, up from $2.7 billion, of which $336 million was restricted on December 31, 2012.

On April 10, the Company launched and priced an offering of 2013-1 Class A and Class B enhanced equipment trust certificates (EETCs) in the aggregate face amount of approximately $820 million. The proceeds from the offering will be used to finance its purchase of 18 Airbus aircraft scheduled to be delivered from September 2013 to June 2014. The transaction is expected to close on April 24, 2013.

As a result of the above mentioned EETC transaction, the Company has secured financing commitments for all of its aircraft deliveries to June 2014.

US Airways' Chief Financial Officer Derek Kerr stated, "We are extremely pleased with the results of our recent EETC financing transaction. Thanks to our strong financial and operational performance, along with our strategic positioning, we were able to obtain the lowest fixed rate financing on an EETC issued by a major airline since 2003."

Special Items

The Company recognized approximately $11 million of net special charges in the first quarter. Operating special charges totaled $41 million and primarily included costs related to the merger and the ratification of the US Airways flight attendant collective bargaining agreement. In addition, the Company recognized a $30 million non operating special credit in connection with an award received in an arbitration related to previous investments in auction rate securities.

Merger with American

On February 14, US Airways announced that it had reached a definitive merger agreement with AMR Corporation to create the new American Airlines. The new American will have a robust global network, a strong financial foundation, and is expected to generate more than $1 billion in annual synergies by 2015. The Companies presently expect the transaction to close in the third quarter.

Notable Accomplishments

Marketing and Customer Enhancements

• Began new daily, non-stop service between its largest hub in Charlotte, N.C. and London's preferred business airport, Heathrow. The daily flight will supplement the airline's existing daily service between its international gateway in Philadelphia and Heathrow, and replaces its service between Charlotte and London's Gatwick airport.
• Introduced two new choices to DineFresh, its premium meal option for customers flying in Economy to Europe, the Middle East and South America. Since the program's inception in August 2012, US Airways remains the only U.S.-based carrier to deliver a premium meal option for customers traveling internationally to or from the United States in Economy.
• Announced new non-stop, daily year-round service from its international gateway in Philadelphia to Salt Lake City on June 8. The new service will give customers in Salt Lake City one-stop access to destinations throughout the East Coast, Europe, the Middle East and the Caribbean.

People

• The airline's employees earned approximately $6 million in profit sharing for the first quarter results and an additional $4 million in operational incentive payouts through February.
• Honored 64 employees for their more than 45 years of service with US Airways (pilots were honored for 40 years) at the airline's service anniversary dinner.
• Selected 51 employees to receive the fourth quarter Chairman's Award, US Airways' most prestigious honor.
• Awarded ten employees $10,000 each for providing exceptional service to customers through the airline's "Above & Beyond" program. The "Above & Beyond" program recognizes employees who provide exceptional service to the airline's customers and fellow employees. Since launching the program in 2006, the airline has received more than 300,000 A&B coupons and has awarded nearly $7.3 million to more than 9,000 employees.
• Announced that its 6,800 flight attendants, represented by the Association of Flight Attendants – CWA (AFA), ratified a new contract that provides immediate pay increases and includes support for the merger of US Airways and American Airlines.
• Announced that its pilots represented by the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), at both wholly owned Express carriers, PSA Airlines and Piedmont Airlines, have voted to ratify new five-year collective bargaining agreements.

Other Notable Accomplishments

• Announced that the Company has received FAA certification on its wide-body Airbus A330 aircraft for SafeRoute®, a cornerstone navigation computer software system for the FAA's NextGen airspace redesign program.
• Announced that the US Airways Education Foundation will award $270,000 in grants this year to nonprofit organizations in the airline's hub cities of Charlotte, N.C., Philadelphia, Phoenix and Washington, D.C.  Grants will be awarded to children's educational programs aimed to increase academic achievement for those they serve. Since 1992, the US Airways Education Foundation has awarded nearly $4.9 million in scholarships and grants.
• Announced that its Community Foundation awarded a total of $125,000 in grants to Arizona Opera and Ballet Arizona to assist in facilities renovation.

Analyst Conference Call/Webcast Details

US Airways will conduct a live audio webcast of its earnings call today at 12:30 p.m. ET, which will be available to the public on a listen-only basis at www.usairways.com under the Company Info >>Investor Relations tab. An archive of the call/webcast will be available in the Investor Relations portion of the website through May 23.

2013 Investor Guidance

The Company will provide its investor relations guidance on its website (www.usairways.com) immediately following its 12:30 p.m. ET conference call. The Company typically provides guidance related to cost per available seat mile (CASM) excluding special charges, fuel and profit sharing, fuel prices, other revenues and estimated interest expense/income on its investor relations update page on its web site. This update will also include the airline's capacity, fleet plan and estimated capital spending for the remainder of 2013.

About US Airways

US Airways, along with US Airways Shuttle and US Airways Express, operates more than 3,100 flights per day and serves 198 communities in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Europe, the Middle East, the Caribbean, Central and South America. The airline employs more than 32,000 aviation professionals worldwide, operates the world's largest fleet of Airbus aircraft and is a member of the Star Alliance network, which offers its customers more than 21,900 daily flights to 1,329 airports in 194 countries. Together with its US Airways Express partners, the airline serves approximately 80 million passengers each year and operates hubs in Charlotte, N.C., Philadelphia, Phoenix and Washington, D.C. Aviation Week and Overhaul & Maintenance magazine presented US Airways with the 2012 Aviation Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) of the Year Award for demonstrating outstanding achievement and innovation in the area of technical operations. Military Times Edge magazine named US Airways as a Best for Vets employer for the past three years. US Airways was, for the third year in a row, the only airline included as one of the 50 best companies to work for in the U.S. by LATINA Style magazine's 50 Report. The airline also earned a 100 percent rating on the Human Rights Campaign Corporate Equality index for six consecutive years. The Corporate Equality index is a leading indicator of companies' attitudes and policies toward lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees and customers. For more company information visit usairways.com, follow on Twitter @USAirways or at Facebook.com/USAirways. (LCCF)

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This document includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  These forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as "may," "will," "expect," "intend," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "plan," "project," "could," "should," "would," "continue," "seek," "target," "guidance," "outlook," "forecast" and other similar words.  These forward-looking statements are based on AMR's and US Airways' current objectives, beliefs and expectations, and they are subject to significant risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results and financial position and timing of certain events to differ materially from the information in the forward-looking statements.  The following factors, among others, could cause actual results and financial position and timing of certain events to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements:  failure of a proposed transaction to be implemented; the challenges and costs of closing, integrating, restructuring and achieving anticipated synergies; the ability to retain key employees; and other economic, business, competitive, and/or regulatory factors affecting the businesses of US Airways and AMR generally, including those set forth in the filings of US Airways and AMR with the SEC, especially in the "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" sections of their respective annual reports on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, their current reports on Form 8-K and other SEC filings, including the registration statement and the proxy statement/prospectus related to the proposed transaction.  Any forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof or as of the dates indicated in the statements.  Neither AMR nor US Airways assumes any obligation to publicly update or supplement any forward-looking statement to reflect actual results, changes in assumptions or changes in other factors affecting these forward-looking statements except as required by law.

Additional Information and Where To Find It

This communication does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities or a solicitation of any vote or approval.  The proposed merger transaction between AMR Corporation ("AMR") and US Airways Group, Inc. ("US Airways") will be submitted to the stockholders of US Airways for their consideration.  AMR has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") a registration statement on Form S-4, which includes a preliminary proxy statement of US Airways that also constitutes a prospectus of AMR. US Airways expects to file with the SEC a definitive proxy statement on Schedule 14A, and AMR and US Airways also plan to file other documents with the SEC regarding the proposed transaction. Investors and security holders of US Airways are urged to read the PRELIMINARY proxy statement/prospectus and other relevant documents that will be filed with the SEC (including the definitive proxy statement/PROSPECTUS) carefully and in their entirety when they become available because they contain important information about the proposed transaction. Investors and security holders may obtain free copies of the preliminary proxy statement/prospectus and other documents containing important information about AMR and US Airways (including the definitive proxy statement/prospectus), once such documents are filed with the SEC, through the website maintained by the SEC at http://www.sec.gov. Copies of the documents filed with the SEC by US Airways, when and if available, can be obtained free of charge on US Airways' website at www.usairways.com or by directing a written request to US Airways Group, Inc., 111 West Rio Salado Parkway, Tempe, Arizona 85281, Attention: Vice President, Legal Affairs. Copies of the documents filed with the SEC by AMR, when and if available, can be obtained free of charge on AMR's website at www.aa.com or by directing a written request to AMR Corporation, P.O. Box 619616, MD 5675, Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, Texas 75261-9616, Attention: Investor Relations or by emailing investor.relations@aa.com.

US Airways, AMR and certain of their respective directors, executive officers and certain members of management may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from the stockholders of US Airways in connection with the proposed transaction.  Information about the directors and executive officers of US Airways is set forth in its Annual Report on Form 10-K/A, which was filed with the SEC on April 16, 2013, and the preliminary proxy statement/prospectus related to the proposed transaction, which was filed with the SEC on April 15, 2013.  Information about the directors and executive officers of AMR is set forth in its Annual Report on Form 10-K/A, which was filed with the SEC on April 16, 2013, and the preliminary proxy statement/prospectus related to the proposed transaction, which was filed with the SEC on April 15, 2013. These documents can be obtained free of charge from the sources indicated above. Other information regarding the participants in the proxy solicitation may also be included in the definitive proxy statement/prospectus and other relevant materials when and if filed with the SEC in connection with the proposed transaction.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SOURCE US Airways Group, Inc.

Dan Cravens, 480-693-5729