In an announcement on Friday, American Eagle indicated that it may furlough up to 233 Pilots and Flight Attendants. The regional affiliate of American Airlines (who’s parent company AMR, recently filed for bankruptcy protection) stated that this was an initial effort to help contain costs as the company goes through reorganization.

119 pilots and 104 flight attendants from the Dallas Forth Worth (DFW) area could lose their jobs as soon as February 13, 2012 and the regional airline also indicated that it is likely to return turbo prop aircraft back to the leasing company as a further cost cutting measure.

I suspect this is the initial salvo and that additional cuts to staffing and equipment will be forthcoming as the company navigates it’s corporate restructuring.

To help combat the potential loss of passengers to competing airlines, American has launched a very aggressive marketing promotion awarding double the Elite Qualifying Miles one would earn on a standard trip. This applies to the entire American Airlines Timetable and will be valid until January 31, 2012.

For those already ticketed on American Airline Flights, it is extremely unlikely that you will notice any major disruption in service. If anything, you may see the airline be even more passenger friendly to help keep their customers coming back.