American Airlines to Simplify Crew Scheduling in Chicago Test.

Byline: Trebor Banstetter

Jun. 11--FORT WORTH, Texas -- American Airlines will simplify its scheduling of some aircraft and flight crews in Chicago next month in a test that executives hope will save money and increase reliability.

The plan, inspired by operations at low-fare airlines, will affect flight crew and maintenance scheduling on MD-80 aircraft. If successful, it could be expanded to the entire domestic network of the Fort Worth-based airline.

"We're trying to make one flight less dependent on another to minimize disruptions and be more cost-effective," said Ralph Richardi, American's senior vice president of customer service. "We're pretty comfortable that what we're looking at will work."

During the experiment, pilots and flight attendants will more often be assigned to a single plane all day rather than moving among multiple aircraft. Mechanics will repair problems at the gate rather than pulling airplanes out of service. And there will be fewer "swaps" of aircraft to replace planes that have been delayed.

The changes cut to the heart of American's complex hub-and-spoke route network and are the latest sign of the struggling airline's effort to revamp its structure so it can compete with discounters.

In the past year, American has slimmed down its fleet from 14 aircraft types to six, streamlined its schedules at hub airports and obtained $1.6 billion in concessions from unionized employees.