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Emergence From Chapter 11 and Merger with US Airways Group
6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2014
Reorganization [Line Items]  
Emergence From Chapter 11 and Merger with US Airways Group
Emergence From Chapter 11 and Merger with US Airways Group
Overview
On November 29, 2011 (the Petition Date), AMR, its principal subsidiary, American, and certain of the Company's other direct and indirect domestic subsidiaries (collectively, the Debtors), filed voluntary petitions for relief (the Chapter 11 Cases) under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (the Bankruptcy Code) in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York (the Bankruptcy Court). On October 21, 2013, the Bankruptcy Court entered an order (the Confirmation Order) approving and confirming the Debtors' fourth amended joint plan of reorganization (as amended, the Plan).
On the Effective Date, the Debtors consummated their reorganization pursuant to the Plan, principally through the transactions contemplated by that certain Agreement and Plan of Merger (as amended, the Merger Agreement), dated as of February 13, 2013, by and among the Company, Merger Sub and US Airways Group, pursuant to which Merger Sub merged with and into US Airways Group, with US Airways Group surviving as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company following the Merger. Pursuant to the Merger Agreement, each share of common stock, par value $0.01 per share, of US Airways Group was converted into the right to receive one share of American Airlines Group Inc. common stock, par value $0.01 per share (AAG Common Stock).
From the Petition Date through the Effective Date, pursuant to automatic stay provisions under the Bankruptcy Code and orders granted by the Bankruptcy Court, all actions to enforce or otherwise effect repayment of liabilities preceding the Petition Date as well as all pending litigation against the Debtors generally were stayed. Following the Effective Date, actions to enforce or otherwise effect repayment of liabilities preceding the Petition Date generally have been permanently enjoined. Any unresolved claims will continue to be subject to the claims reconciliation process under the supervision of the Bankruptcy Court. However, certain pending litigation related to pre-petition liabilities may proceed in courts other than the Bankruptcy Court to the extent the parties to such litigation have obtained relief from the permanent injunction.
Plan of Reorganization
The Plan implements the Merger and incorporates a compromise and settlement of certain intercreditor and intercompany claim issues.
Pursuant to the Plan, all shares of AMR common stock outstanding prior to the Effective Date were canceled. AAG's Certificate of Incorporation, which was approved in connection with the Plan, authorizes the issuance of 1.75 billion new shares of AAG Common Stock and 200 million shares of AAG Series A Preferred Stock, par value $0.01 per share (AAG Series A Preferred Stock). Of the authorized AAG Series A Preferred Stock, approximately 168 million were designated "Series A Convertible Preferred Stock," with a stated value $25.00 per share, and issued in accordance with the Plan. AAG Common Stock is listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol "AAL" and began trading on December 9, 2013. AAG Series A Preferred Stock was listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol "AALCP" from December 9, 2013 until its final mandatory conversion on April 8, 2014. In addition, the 2013 Incentive Award Plan (the 2013 IAP) authorizes the grant of awards for the issuance of 40 million shares of AAG Common Stock plus any shares underlying awards granted under the 2013 IAP, or any pre-existing US Airways Group plan, that are forfeited, terminate or are cash settled (in whole or in part) without a payment being made in the form of shares. Any shares that are available for issuance under the US Airways Group 2011 Incentive Award Plan (the 2011 IAP) as of the effective date of the Merger may be used for awards under the 2013 IAP; provided, that awards using such available shares shall not be made after the date awards or grants could have been made under 2011 IAP and shall only be made to individuals who were not providing services to American Airlines Group prior to the Merger.
The Plan contains the following provisions relating to the treatment of pre-petition claims against the Debtors and other holders of allowed interests in the Debtors:
all secured claims against the Debtors have been reinstated;
allowed administrative claims, priority claims and convenience claims have been or will be paid in full in cash;
other holders of allowed pre-petition unsecured claims, holders of allowed interests and certain employees of AMR received or will receive 72% of AAG Common Stock (on a fully converted basis) authorized to be issued pursuant to the Plan and in connection with the Merger under the following provisions:
all creditors holding general unsecured claims against American that are guaranteed by AAG and general unsecured claims against AAG that are guaranteed by American (Double-Dip Unsecured Claims) were treated the same under the Plan. Holders of Double-Dip Unsecured Claims received, at the Effective Date, their recovery in shares of AAG Series A Preferred Stock with a stated amount equal to the allowed amount of their claims, including post-petition interest at the non-default rate;
all creditors holding Single-Dip Unsecured Claims were treated the same regardless of whether the claim was asserted against the AAG Debtors, the American Debtors, or other Debtors. As used herein, "Single-Dip Unsecured Claims" means the general unsecured claims against the Debtors that were not guaranteed by any other Debtor, other than the claims of the Debtors' labor unions representing mainline workers. Holders of Single-Dip Unsecured Claims received a portion of their recovery in shares of AAG Series A Preferred Stock at the Effective Date and their remaining recovery in shares of AAG Common Stock during the 120-day period after the Effective Date;
holders of certain labor-related deemed claims and certain non-management, non-union employees as specified in the Plan received, at the Effective Date, the right to receive an allocation of shares of AAG Common Stock representing 23.6% of the total number of shares of AAG Common Stock ultimately distributed to holders of pre-petition general unsecured creditors against the Debtors. On the Effective Date, pursuant to the Plan, an initial allocation of approximately 39 million shares of AAG Common Stock was made related to these labor and employee groups, of which approximately 27 million shares were distributed on the Effective Date and approximately 13 million shares of which were withheld in connection with the Company making a cash payment of approximately $300 million for certain required withholding taxes;
holders of allowed interests in AMR (primarily holders of AMR common stock existing immediately prior to the Effective Date) received, at the Effective Date, a distribution of approximately 26 million shares of AAG Common Stock representing 3.5% of the total number of shares of AAG Common Stock contemplated for issuance pursuant to the Plan and received an additional 267 million shares of AAG Common Stock during the 120-day period after the Effective Date; and
holders of disputed claims at the Effective Date, to the extent such disputed claims become allowed Single-Dip Unsecured Claims after the Effective Date, are eligible to receive shares of AAG Common Stock held in reserve (the Disputed Claims Reserve), beginning 180 days after the Effective Date. Disputed claimholders that subsequently become holders of Single-Dip Unsecured Claims will receive, subject to the availability of sufficient shares in the Disputed Claims Reserve, the number of shares of AAG Common Stock that the disputed claimholder would have received had such claimholder been a holder of Single-Dip Unsecured Claims as of the Effective Date.
The Plan contemplated the distribution of up to 756 million shares of AAG Common Stock, however this amount has been reduced by approximately 20 million shares because certain tax withholdings for employees were paid in cash as permitted under the Plan. In accordance with the Plan, the Company issued the remaining shares of AAG Common Stock over the 120-day distribution period, except for shares held in the Disputed Claims Reserve. In addition, pursuant to the Plan, approximately 197 million shares of AAG Common Stock were distributed to holders of outstanding shares of US Airways Group common stock.
Pursuant to rulings of the Bankruptcy Court, the Plan has established the Disputed Claims Reserve to hold shares of AAG Common Stock reserved for issuance to disputed claimholders at the Effective Date that ultimately become holders of allowed Single-Dip Unsecured Claims. The shares provided for under the Plan were determined based upon a Disputed Claims Reserve amount of claims of approximately $755 million, representing the maximum amount of additional distributions to subsequently allowed Single-Dip Unsecured Claims under the Plan. As of June 30, 2014 approximately 30.4 million shares of AAG Common Stock were reserved for distribution to holders of disputed Single-Dip general Unsecured Claims (Single-Dip Equity Obligations) whose claims ultimately become allowed as well as to certain AMR labor groups and employees who received a deemed claim amount based upon a fixed percentage of the distributions to be made to general unsecured claimholders. As disputed claims are resolved, the claimants will receive distributions of shares from the Disputed Claims Reserve on the same basis as if such distributions had been made on or about the Effective Date. On July 1, 2014, approximately 2.9 million of the approximately 30.4 million shares held in the Disputed Claims Reserve were distributed to holders of allowed Single-Dip Unsecured Claims, to holders of certain labor-related deemed claims, and to holders of certain non-management, non-union employee deemed claims as specified in the Plan, and shares were withheld or sold on account of related tax obligations. To the extent that any of the reserved shares remain undistributed upon resolution of all remaining disputed claims, such shares will not be returned to the Company but rather will be distributed to former AMR shareholders as of the Effective Date. The Company is not required to distribute additional shares above the limits contemplated by the Plan described above.
In addition, from the Effective Date through June 30, 2014, the Company made the following cash disbursements under the Plan:
$385 million in cash to the pension plans in connection with missed contributions to the pension plans during the Chapter 11 Cases and interest and penalty interest thereon;
$108 million in cash to holders in partial or full satisfaction of their claims, including to holders of administrative claims, and state and local priority tax claims;
$196 million in cure payments to holders of secured debt; and
Approximately $542 million for payroll taxes associated with equity distributions to employees.
Several parties have filed appeals seeking reconsideration of the Confirmation Order. Refer to Note 14 for more information.
As noted above, the reconciliation process with respect to the remaining claims will take considerable time post-emergence. The Company's estimate of the amounts of disputed claims that will ultimately become allowed Single-Dip Unsecured Claims are included in Mandatorily convertible preferred stock and other bankruptcy settlement obligations on the Company's condensed consolidated balance sheet as of June 30, 2014. As these claims are resolved, or where better information becomes available and is evaluated, the Company will make adjustments to the liabilities recorded on its condensed consolidated financial statements as appropriate. Any such adjustments could be material to the Company's financial position or results of operations in any given period.
Availability and Utilization of Net Operating Losses
Upon emergence from bankruptcy, the Debtors experienced an "ownership change" as defined in Section 382 of the Internal Revenue Code which could potentially limit the ability to utilize certain tax attributes including the Debtors’ substantial net operating losses (NOLs). The general limitation rules for a debtor in a bankruptcy case are liberalized where the ownership change occurs upon emergence from bankruptcy. While the Debtors anticipate taking advantage of certain special rules for federal income tax purposes that would permit approximately $9.0 billion of the federal NOL Carryforwards to be utilized without regard to the annual limitation generally imposed by Section 382, there can be no assurance that these special rules will apply.
Moreover, an ownership change subsequent to the Debtors’ emergence from bankruptcy may further limit or effectively eliminate the ability to utilize the Debtors’ NOL Carryforwards and other tax attributes. To reduce the risk of a potential adverse effect on the Debtors’ ability to utilize the NOL Carryforwards, AAG's Certificate of Incorporation contains transfer restrictions applicable to certain substantial shareholders. Although the purpose of these transfer restrictions is to prevent an ownership change from occurring, there can be no assurance that an ownership change will not occur even with these transfer restrictions. A copy of AAG's Certificate of Incorporation was attached as Exhibit 3.1 to a Current Report on Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on December 9, 2013.
Reorganization Items, Net
Reorganization items refer to revenues, expenses (including professional fees), realized gains and losses and provisions for losses that are realized or incurred in the Chapter 11 Cases. The following table summarizes the components included in reorganization items, net on the condensed consolidated statements of operations for the three and six months ended June 30, 2013 (in millions):
 
 
Three Months Ended June 30, 2013
 
Six Months Ended June 30, 2013
Aircraft and facility financing renegotiations and rejections (1)
 
$
83

 
$
219

Professional fees
 
40

 
79

Other
 
1

 
(14
)
Total reorganization items, net
 
$
124

 
$
284

(1) 
Amounts include allowed claims (claims approved by the Bankruptcy Court) and estimated allowed claims relating to (i) the rejection or modification of financings related to aircraft and (ii) entry of orders treated as unsecured claims with respect to facility agreements supporting certain issuances of special facility revenue bonds. The Debtors recorded an estimated claim associated with the rejection or modification of a financing or facility agreement when the applicable motion was filed with the Bankruptcy Court to reject or modify such financing and the Debtors believed that it was probable the motion would be approved, and there was sufficient information to estimate the claim.
AA [Member]
 
Reorganization [Line Items]  
Emergence From Chapter 11 and Merger with US Airways Group
Emergence From Chapter 11
Overview
On November 29, 2011 (the Petition Date), AMR, its principal subsidiary, American Airlines, Inc. (American), and certain of AMR's other direct and indirect domestic subsidiaries (collectively, the Debtors), filed voluntary petitions for relief (the Chapter 11 Cases) under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (the Bankruptcy Code) in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York (the Bankruptcy Court). On October 21, 2013, the Bankruptcy Court entered an order (the Confirmation Order) approving and confirming the Debtors' fourth amended joint plan of reorganization (as amended, the Plan).
On December 9, 2013 (the Effective Date), the Debtors consummated their reorganization pursuant to the Plan, principally through the transactions contemplated by that certain Agreement and Plan of Merger (as amended, the Merger Agreement), dated as of February 13, 2013, by and among AAG, AMR Merger Sub, Inc. (Merger Sub) and US Airways Group, Inc. (US Airways Group), pursuant to which Merger Sub merged with and into US Airways Group (the Merger), with US Airways Group surviving as a wholly-owned subsidiary of AAG following the Merger. Pursuant to the Merger Agreement, each share of common stock, par value $0.01 per share, of US Airways Group was converted into the right to receive one share of American Airlines Group Inc. common stock, par value $0.01 per share (AAG Common Stock).
From the Petition Date through the Effective Date, pursuant to automatic stay provisions under the Bankruptcy Code and orders granted by the Bankruptcy Court, all actions to enforce or otherwise effect repayment of liabilities preceding the Petition Date as well as all pending litigation against the Debtors generally were stayed. Following the Effective Date, actions to enforce or otherwise effect repayment of liabilities preceding the Petition Date generally have been permanently enjoined. Any unresolved claims will continue to be subject to the claims reconciliation process under the supervision of the Bankruptcy Court. However, certain pending litigation related to pre-petition liabilities may proceed in courts other than the Bankruptcy Court to the extent the parties to such litigation have obtained relief from the permanent injunction.
Plan of Reorganization
The Plan implements the Merger and incorporates a compromise and settlement of certain intercreditor and intercompany claim issues.
Pursuant to the Plan, all shares of AMR common stock outstanding prior to the Effective Date were canceled. AAG's Certificate of Incorporation, which was approved in connection with the Plan, authorizes the issuance of 1.75 billion new shares of AAG Common Stock and 200 million shares of AAG Series A Preferred Stock, par value $0.01 per share (AAG Series A Preferred Stock). Of the authorized AAG Series A Preferred Stock, approximately 168 million were designated "Series A Convertible Preferred Stock," with a stated value $25.00 per share, and issued in accordance with the Plan. AAG Common Stock is listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol "AAL" and began trading on December 9, 2013. AAG Series A Preferred Stock was listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol "AALCP" from December 9, 2013 until its final mandatory conversion on April 8, 2014. In addition, the 2013 Incentive Award Plan (the 2013 IAP) authorizes the grant of awards for the issuance of 40 million shares of AAG Common Stock plus any shares underlying awards granted under the 2013 IAP, or any pre-existing US Airways Group plan, that are forfeited, terminate or are cash settled (in whole or in part) without a payment being made in the form of shares. Any shares that are available for issuance under the US Airways Group 2011 Incentive Award Plan (the 2011 IAP) as of the effective date of the Merger may be used for awards under the 2013 IAP; provided, that awards using such available shares shall not be made after the date awards or grants could have been made under 2011 IAP and shall only be made to individuals who were not providing services to American Airlines Group prior to the Merger.
The Plan contains the following provisions relating to the treatment of pre-petition claims against the Debtors and other holders of allowed interests in the Debtors:
all secured claims against the Debtors have been reinstated;
allowed administrative claims, priority claims and convenience claims have been or will be paid in full in cash;
other holders of allowed pre-petition unsecured claims, holders of allowed interests and certain employees of AMR received or will receive 72% of AAG Common Stock (on a fully converted basis) authorized to be issued pursuant to the Plan and in connection with the Merger under the following provisions:
all creditors holding general unsecured claims against American that are guaranteed by AAG and general unsecured claims against AAG that are guaranteed by American (Double-Dip Unsecured Claims) were treated the same under the Plan. Holders of Double-Dip Unsecured Claims received, at the Effective Date, their recovery in shares of AAG Series A Preferred Stock with a stated amount equal to the allowed amount of their claims, including post-petition interest at the non-default rate;
all creditors holding Single-Dip Unsecured Claims were treated the same regardless of whether the claim was asserted against the AAG Debtors, the American Debtors, or other Debtors. As used herein, "Single-Dip Unsecured Claims" means the general unsecured claims against the Debtors that were not guaranteed by any other Debtor, other than the claims of the Debtors' labor unions representing mainline workers. Holders of Single-Dip Unsecured Claims received a portion of their recovery in shares of AAG Series A Preferred Stock at the Effective Date and their remaining recovery in shares of AAG Common Stock during the 120-day period after the Effective Date;
holders of certain labor-related deemed claims and certain non-management, non-union employees as specified in the Plan received, at the Effective Date, the right to receive an allocation of shares of AAG Common Stock representing 23.6% of the total number of shares of AAG Common Stock ultimately distributed to holders of pre-petition general unsecured creditors against the Debtors. On the Effective Date, pursuant to the Plan, an initial allocation of approximately 39 million shares of AAG Common Stock was made related to these labor and employee groups, of which approximately 27 million shares were distributed on the Effective Date and approximately 13 million shares of which were withheld in connection with American making a cash payment of approximately $300 million for certain required withholding taxes;
holders of allowed interests in AMR (primarily holders of AMR common stock existing immediately prior to the Effective Date) received, at the Effective Date, a distribution of approximately 26 million shares of AAG Common Stock representing 3.5% of the total number of shares of AAG Common Stock contemplated for issuance pursuant to the Plan and received an additional 267 million shares of AAG Common Stock during the 120-day period after the Effective Date; and
holders of disputed claims at the Effective Date, to the extent such disputed claims become allowed Single-Dip Unsecured Claims after the Effective Date, are eligible to receive shares of AAG Common Stock held in reserve (the Disputed Claims Reserve), beginning 180 days after the Effective Date. Disputed claimholders that subsequently become holders of Single-Dip Unsecured Claims will receive, subject to the availability of sufficient shares in the Disputed Claims Reserve, the number of shares of AAG Common Stock that the disputed claimholder would have received had such claimholder been a holder of Single-Dip Unsecured Claims as of the Effective Date.
The Plan contemplated the distribution of up to 756 million shares of AAG Common Stock, however this amount has been reduced by approximately 20 million shares because certain tax withholdings for employees were paid in cash as permitted under the Plan. In accordance with the Plan, AAG issued the remaining shares of AAG Common Stock over the 120-day distribution period, except for shares held in the Disputed Claims Reserve. In addition, pursuant to the Plan, approximately 197 million shares of AAG Common Stock were distributed to holders of outstanding shares of US Airways Group common stock.
Pursuant to rulings of the Bankruptcy Court, the Plan has established the Disputed Claims Reserve to hold shares of AAG Common Stock reserved for issuance to disputed claimholders at the Effective Date that ultimately become holders of allowed Single-Dip Unsecured Claims. The shares provided for under the Plan were determined based upon a Disputed Claims Reserve amount of claims of approximately $755 million, representing the maximum amount of additional distributions to subsequently allowed Single-Dip Unsecured Claims under the Plan. As of June 30, 2014 approximately 30.4 million shares of AAG Common Stock were reserved for distribution to holders of disputed Single-Dip general Unsecured Claims (Single-Dip Equity Obligations) whose claims ultimately become allowed as well as to certain AMR labor groups and employees who received a deemed claim amount based upon a fixed percentage of the distributions to be made to general unsecured claimholders. As disputed claims are resolved, the claimants will receive distributions of shares from the Disputed Claims Reserve on the same basis as if such distributions had been made on or about the Effective Date. On July 1, 2014, approximately 2.9 million of the approximately 30.4 million shares held in the Disputed Claims Reserve were distributed to holders of allowed Single-Dip Unsecured Claims, to holders of certain labor-related deemed claims, and to holders of certain non-management, non-union employee deemed claims as specified in the Plan, and shares were withheld or sold on account of related tax obligations. To the extent that any of the reserved shares remain undistributed upon resolution of all remaining disputed claims, such shares will not be returned to AAG but rather will be distributed to former AMR shareholders as of the Effective Date. AAG is not required to distribute additional shares above the limits contemplated by the Plan described above.
In addition, from the Effective Date through June 30, 2014, American made the following cash disbursements under the Plan:
$385 million in cash to the pension plans in connection with missed contributions to the pension plans during the Chapter 11 Cases and interest and penalty interest thereon;
$108 million in cash to holders in partial or full satisfaction of their claims, including to holders of administrative claims, and state and local priority tax claims;
$196 million in cure payments to holders of secured debt; and
Approximately $542 million for payroll taxes associated with equity distributions to employees.
Several parties have filed appeals seeking reconsideration of the Confirmation Order. Refer to Note 14 for more information.
As noted above, the reconciliation process with respect to the remaining claims will take considerable time post-emergence. American's estimate of the amounts of disputed claims that will ultimately become allowed Single-Dip Unsecured Claims are included in Bankruptcy settlement obligations on American's condensed consolidated balance sheet as of June 30, 2014. As these claims are resolved, or where better information becomes available and is evaluated, American will make adjustments to the liabilities recorded in American's condensed consolidated financial statements as appropriate. Any such adjustments could be material to American's financial position or results of operations in any given period.
Availability and Utilization of Net Operating Losses
Upon emergence from bankruptcy, American experienced an "ownership change" as defined in Section 382 of the Internal Revenue Code which could potentially limit the ability to utilize certain tax attributes including American's substantial net operating losses (NOLs). The general limitation rules for a debtor in a bankruptcy case are liberalized where the ownership change occurs upon emergence from bankruptcy. While American anticipates taking advantage of certain special rules for federal income tax purposes that would permit approximately $9.5 billion of the federal NOL Carryforwards to be utilized without regard to the annual limitation generally imposed by Section 382, there can be no assurance that these special rules will apply.
Moreover, an ownership change subsequent to American's emergence from bankruptcy may further limit or effectively eliminate the ability to utilize American's NOL Carryforwards and other tax attributes. To reduce the risk of a potential adverse effect on American's ability to utilize the NOL Carryforwards, AAG's Certificate of Incorporation contains transfer restrictions applicable to certain substantial shareholders. Although the purpose of these transfer restrictions is to prevent an ownership change from occurring, there can be no assurance that an ownership change will not occur even with these transfer restrictions. A copy of AAG's Certificate of Incorporation was attached as Exhibit 3.1 to a Current Report on Form 8-K filed by AAG with the SEC on December 9, 2013.
Reorganization Items, Net
Reorganization items refer to revenues, expenses (including professional fees), realized gains and losses and provisions for losses that are realized or incurred in the Chapter 11 Cases. The following table summarizes the components included in reorganization items, net on the condensed consolidated statements of operations for the three and six months ended June 30, 2013 (in millions):
 
Three Months Ended June 30, 2013
 
Six Months Ended June 30, 2013
Aircraft and facility financing renegotiations and rejections (1)
$
83

 
$
219

Professional fees
40

 
78

Other
1

 
(14
)
Total reorganization items, net
$
124

 
$
283

(1) 
Amounts include allowed claims (claims approved by the Bankruptcy Court) and estimated allowed claims relating to (i) the rejection or modification of financings related to aircraft and (ii) entry of orders treated as unsecured claims with respect to facility agreements supporting certain issuances of special facility revenue bonds. The Debtors recorded an estimated claim associated with the rejection or modification of a financing or facility agreement when the applicable motion was filed with the Bankruptcy Court to reject or modify such financing and the Debtors believed that it was probable the motion would be approved, and there was sufficient information to estimate the claim.