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American Airlines and labor unions representing mechanics, baggage handlers and other ground workers said Friday they reached agreement on a two-year contract extension that includes double-digit pay increases. The agreement covers 34,000 employees who are represented by the Transport Workers Union and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers. The TWU said top-scale wages would increase 12% to 15% on Jan. 1 and 18% to 26% over the term of the extension. The unions did not say when workers will vote on ratification. The extension would run through 2026. The agreement would raise American’s labor costs but bring it a longer period of stability with its workforce. Union flight attendants recently ratified a contract that includes cumulative pay raises of up to 36% over five years. Last year, pilots approved a pact that boosts pay more than 40% over four years. John Samuelsen, international president of the Transport Workers Union International, said the unions avoided repeating a 2019 confrontation, when American sued the two unions, claiming they were conducting an illegal work slowdown to gain leverage in contract negotiations.<br/>

American Airlines on Friday asked the U.S. Transportation Department to allow it to delay resuming two daily flights to China from the United States, citing lagging travel demand between the world's two largest economies. The U.S. air carrier currently operates a daily flight between Dallas and Shanghai and asked approval to extend a waiver to continue not flying two other daily flights to China saying "U.S.–China passenger demand has not recovered to pre-pandemic levels." Both Delta Air Lines and United Airlines have also sought permission to continue not operating most of their China flights.<br/>

American Airlines is in talks to make Citigroup its exclusive credit card partner, dropping rival issuer Barclays from a partnership that dates back to the airline’s 2013 takeover of US Airways, said people with knowledge of the negotiations. American has been working with banks and card networks on a new long-term deal for months with the aim of consolidating its business with a single issuer to boost the revenue haul from its loyalty program, according to the people. Talks are ongoing, and the timing of an agreement, which would be subject to regulatory approval, is unknown, said the people, who declined to be identified speaking about a confidential process. Banks’ co-brand deals with airlines, retailers and hotel chains are some of the most hotly contested negotiations in the industry. While they give the issuing bank a captive audience of millions of loyal customers who spend billions of dollars a year, the details of the arrangements can make a huge difference in how profitable it is for either party. Big brands have been driving harder bargains in recent years, demanding a bigger slice of revenue from interest and fees, for example. Meanwhile, banks have been pushing back or exiting the space entirely, saying that rising card losses, scrutiny from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and higher capital costs make for tight margins. Airlines rely on card programs to help them stay afloat, earning billions of dollars a year from banks in exchange for miles that customers earn when they use their cards. Those partnerships were crucial during the pandemic, when travel demand dried up but consumers kept spending and earning miles on their cards. Carriers have said growth in card spending has far exceeded that of passenger revenue in recent years.<br/>

British Airways has cancelled all its flights from a UK city airport next summer. The airline said in a statement it was "suspending our summer 2025 operations from Southampton Airport". It did not give a reason behind the decision. An airport spokesperson said the move was "clearly disappointing". Under its subsidiary BA City Flyer, the airline runs flights from the airport to Bergerac, Dublin, Faro, Malaga and Majorca on weekends during the summer. British Airways said affected customers would be contacted with options, including rebooking on alternative flights - with either British Airways or another airline - or a full refund. A spokesperson from Southampton Airport said: "Clearly it’s disappointing when any route is removed. "However, we are in constant dialogue with airlines regarding the introduction of new services and that includes backfilling the routes withdrawn by British Airways." It comes almost a year after the airport unveiled its extended runway. At the time, it said the longer runway was "absolutely critical" to its viability as a regional airport and to handle a wider variety of aircraft.<br/>