AAL American Airlines Group Inc

American Airlines today announced that Captain Paul Morell, the airline’s Vice President – Safety, Regulatory Compliance and Environmental, will retire in January 2017.

“Paul has been a cornerstone of our airline for 39 years,” said American’s President Robert Isom. “His professionalism and commitment to supporting our employees by ensuring we are doing all we can to run a safe operation is unmatched. It has been an honor to work with Paul for the past nine years. On behalf of everyone at American, we wish him well in his retirement. He will be missed.”

Capt. Morell has built a career as an aviator and safety professional. Prior to his current role, he was Director – Flight Training and Standards. Earlier in his career, he served as fleet captain for the US Airways Airbus A330, Boeing 757 and 767 fleets, where he oversaw pilot training and operational policies and procedures. Prior to joining US Airways, Capt. Morell was a U.S. Navy pilot and aviation safety officer, managing a program of aviation and maintenance safety training and awareness during the fleet introduction of the F-14 aircraft.

Throughout his time in the industry, Capt. Morell has been instrumental in developing several safety programs, including the Advanced Qualification Program (AQP) for pilot training, Threat and Error Management, and Safety Management Systems (SMS). Under his leadership, US Airways was one of the first airlines to commit to implementing the FAA’s voluntary SMS program, which received validation from the FAA in February 2011. Capt. Morell has long been an advocate for the open and transparent sharing of safety and security information among all airlines, the FAA and TSA, ultimately improving the overall safety and security of the industry as a whole.

Capt. Morell has helped shape safety throughout the industry, serving as the industry co-chair of the Commercial Aviation Safety Team (CAST), as a current member and past industry co-chair of the Aviation Safety Information Analysis and Sharing (ASIAS) Executive Board, as well as serving most recently as co-chair on the Pilot Fitness Aviation Rulemaking Committee and multiple other safety boards. He has dedicated his career to looking for the best way to incorporate safety into every aspect of the job and has served as a strong voice for aviation safety in Washington, D.C.

“Paul has been an outstanding leader, first joining me as co-chair of the Aviation Safety Information and Sharing program and now as co-chair of the Commercial Aviation Safety Team," said Peggy Gilligan, Associate Administrator for Aviation Safety at the FAA. "During his tenure in those positions, he has pushed all of us to identify hazards and commit to actions that would mitigate risks.  We have seen continued improvement in the industry safety record and we in the FAA will miss his leadership and his friendship.”

With Morell’s retirement, Kevin Brickner will assume the role of Vice President – Safety, Regulatory Compliance and Environmental. He will be responsible for ensuring that required safety programs and regulatory compliance elements are maintained throughout the airline. He also will be responsible for the airline’s environmental sustainability.

Brickner, who has been with the airline for 20 years and has been working closely with Morell over the past year in anticipation of this change, will report to David Seymour, American’s Senior Vice President – Integrated Operations. Most recently, Brickner served as Vice President – Operations Integration, with responsibility for the integration of the Technical Operation divisions of American and US Airways; he will retain these responsibilities through the remainder of the integration process. Brickner has previously held leadership roles in Engineering, Quality, Training, Maintenance Planning, Aircraft Acquisitions and Operations Compliance.

Brickner began his career at General Electric. He is a graduate of GE’s Manufacturing Management Program and worked in both the Aerospace and Transportation Systems businesses. His roles at GE included manufacturing engineer, production supervisor, continuous process improvement coordinator, and project engineer. Brickner received both his Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering and his Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Pittsburgh.

“A robust succession plan has ensured we have leaders in place who will continue building on the safety culture Paul has created,” said Seymour.  “Kevin and his team are well-versed on the importance of safety for our airline, our customers and our employees, and their expertise makes them the ideal leaders to carry the work forward.”

About American Airlines GroupAmerican Airlines and American Eagle offer an average of nearly 6,700 flights per day to nearly 350 destinations in more than 50 countries. American has hubs in Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Washington, D.C. American is a founding member of the oneworld® alliance, whose members serve more than 1,000 destinations with about 14,250 daily flights to over 150 countries. Shares of American Airlines Group Inc. trade on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol AAL. In 2015, its stock joined the S&P 500 index. Connect with American on Twitter @AmericanAir and at Facebook.com/AmericanAirlines.

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