On July 2, 2024, American Airlines released its Sustainability Report for 2023. The report aims to document the carrier’s work over that year to advance its strategy to “address climate change, accelerate the broader solutions needed to decarbonize aviation, and share progress on other issues important to the company and its stakeholders, including safety, human capital, and customer experience.”
The report highlights the various projects and strategies that the Fort-Worth-based airline has engaged in over 2023, many of which are ongoing in 2024. Of note within the report is the coverage of American’s collaboration with Breakthrough Energy and Google Research on groundbreaking contrail avoidance research, which will inform how the industry might address its impact on climate change.
The report also includes a discussion of how American is extending its commitment to sustainability to its sourcing and procurement practices.
“Thanks to the hard work of our more than 140,000 team members, American continues to deliver for our customers while making strides toward our sustainability goals,” said American’s CEO Robert Isom. “There is far more work to be done and many areas where we will continue to rely on policymakers and partnerships to make progress. But I’m proud of our record – from advancing the development of lower-carbon technologies to our work to better develop and recruit a diverse and talented group of leaders with unmatched expertise throughout the company.”
According to a company statement, “Through ongoing engagement across the company and with a broad range of external stakeholders, American has identified four priority sustainability issues discussed in detail in the report: safety; support for team members; customer satisfaction and operational performance; and climate change and fuel efficiency.”
“American has maintained its commitment to its long-term sustainability goals while recognizing the challenges and interdependencies in reaching them,” the statement continued.
The report breaks down the carrier’s green strategy into six core areas – sustainability strategy overview, addressing climate change, operating safety, supporting team members, serving customers, and sourcing responsibly. Additionally, the report’s appendix features a detailed ‘Climate-related risks and opportunities analysis’ section, which examines over twenty areas of the company’s operations and whether they pose a threat or create an opportunity for the company in terms of sustainability and reaching its goal of achieving net zero by 2050.
“American’s goal to achieve zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 is the right one, but it won’t be easy,” said American’s Chief Sustainability Officer Jill Blickstein. “Our report describes the concrete steps we have taken and sets the stage for the hard work in the years ahead. American is committed to working with our partners inside and beyond the aviation industry to get us and our industry on a path to meet these global challenges.”
The report has been produced in accordance with various industry-leading organizations leading the charge on climate change within the aviation sector, such as the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures as well as the standards for the airline industry developed by the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board.
According to the airline, the 2023 report demonstrates “American’s commitment to transparency and strong industry standards”.
The full report can be read by following this link.