American Retired 40% Of Its Long Haul Planes During Covid — Many Are Now Headed To A New Airline

American Airlines retired roughly 40% of its long-haul-capable fleet during the pandemic, betting travel would stay weak and replacements would arrive when needed. Now some of those supposedly obsolete widebodies are heading to a new airline in Vietnam, a reminder that the planes still had life left — and that American’s decision cost it flexibility, profits, and strategic ground it never fully got back.