Federal officials say airline employment has dropped from last summer because of job cuts at Fort Worth-based American Airlines and regional carriers that use smaller planes.
The U.S. Department of Transportation said Tuesday that airlines employed the equivalent of 381,441 workers in June -- down 2.4 percent from the same month last year.
American cut about 5,400 jobs, or 8.4 percent of its workforce, as it slashed costs during bankruptcy. American had the equivalent of 59,163 full-time workers in June.
American parent AMR Corp., which is trying to merge with US Airways, has recently returned to profitability.
Spirit, Allegiant and JetBlue added jobs. The largest low-cost carrier, Dallas-based Southwest Airlines, cut 2 percent to 45,216.
Copyright AP - Associated Press
