American Airlines posts profit for the first time since start of the pandemic

Company says "strong demand" has helped propel revenue.

American Airlines on Thursday revealed that it earned a profit last quarter for the first time since the beginning of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, a shift the company called "encouraging" amid a slow but ongoing economic recovery.

Company CEO Robert Isom said in a news release that the airline recorded "a quarterly profit, excluding net special items, for the first time since the start of the pandemic, driven by the strong demand environment and the hard work of our team."

Isom cited a "surge in demand for air travel" as helping drive those numbers, claiming that the company is "encouraged by the trends we're seeing across the business" and that it remains "well-positioned for the continued recovery.”

American said the company produced "revenues of $13.4 billion in the second quarter, a 12.2% increase versus 2019 and a record for any quarter in company history."

American was among the airlines that saw travel and customers essentially vanish completely at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the air industry struggling to come back from those crushing losses over the past two years.