American Airlines has hired nearly three-decade industry veteran Nat Pieper to be its new commercial chief as the carrier's profits trail rivals Delta and United .

American ousted its former chief commercial officer, Vasu Raja, in 2024 after his business travel strategy backfired and sparked pushback from lucrative corporate travel agencies, while revenue projections dropped sharply.

Pieper, 56, has worked in the industry since the late 1990s with experience at Northwest Airlines, Delta and Alaska Airlines . Most recently, he's run the massive Oneworld airline alliance that includes American, British Airways and others. His positions included high-level roles in network, alliances, fleet strategy and finance.

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