Commitments and Contingencies (Narrative) (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2011	Jun. 30, 2010	Jun. 30, 2011	Jun. 30, 2010
Decrease in passenger revenue	$ 8,606,000,000	$ 4,494,000,000	$ 15,793,000,000	$ 8,151,000,000
Contingent senior unsecured notes	500,000,000		500,000,000
Contingent senior notes interest rate	8.00%		8.00%
Maximum number of tranches			8
Equal tranches amount			62,500,000
Maximum tranche issue period, days			45
Minimum EBITDAR over the prior twelve months			3,500,000,000
Present value of obligation recorded as liability	49,000,000
Unrestricted cash balance under credit card processing agreement			3,500,000,000
Required reserve under credit card processing agreement			25,000,000
Number of employees	83,000		83,000
Percentage of employees represented by various U.S. labor organizations			74.00%
Redevelopment project at Bush Intercontinental Airport, cost			1,000,000,000
Bonds issued by City of Houston to fund phase one of redevelopment project	100,000,000		100,000,000
Maximum [Member]
Estimated time to complete construction on redevelopment project, in years			10
Minimum [Member]
Estimated time to complete construction on redevelopment project, in years			7
Trans-Atlantic Joint Venture [Member]
Decrease in passenger revenue			$ (44,000,000)