American Airlines' senior leadership ranks is shuffling yet again.
Brian Znotins, American's chief network planner, is retiring, according to a memo the Fort Worth airline sent to The Dallas Morning News. Znotins joined American, the dominant carrier at DFW International Airport, in 2020. He had previously been in leadership at WestJet and United.
Nick Andersen, American's vice president of commercial planning and performance, will become the airline's new senior vice president of network planning on Nov. 1. Andersen has nearly 20 years of airline experience, with stints in revenue management, operations, pricing, fleet planning and more.
"Nick has impressed me from the jump, with his creative thinking, problem solving, and ability to collaborate exceptionally well with other teams across the entire company," Nat Pieper, American's chief commercial officer, told employees in the memo. "With these traits and Nick’s diverse experience, we have a unique opportunity to execute a well-coordinated commercial and operations network plan, and in turn, improve financial results."
There are also some other additions, according to the memo.
American appointed Margaret Mueller as it's new vice president and managing partner of its Chicago market, where it battles United Airlines for control of O'Hare International Airport. Chris Kelly Singley, currently a communications leader at the Oneworld airline alliance, will also join American as vice president of commercial communications, advertising and sponsorships.
This is the latest leadership shift atop American's ranks as the airline attempts to reduce the profitability gap between it and Delta and United. In August, The News broke the story that chief communications officer Ron DeFeo was stepping down from his role, and a number of other executives were receiving new responsibilities. And earlier this year, it was announced that Steve Johnson, the airline's chief strategy officer, was retiring.
In the memo detailing the changes Pieper said the adjustments "will further support our work to become the premier global airline based in the U.S."