William Douglas “Doug” Parker is an American businessman who is currently the Chairman and CEO of American Airlines Group, Inc., the parent company of American Airlines.
Parker grew up in Michigan and received a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Albion College (1984). He later earned an MBA from the Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt University (1986), where American Airlines offered him a job after an on-campus interview.
Parker was a financial analyst at American Airlines from 1986 to 1991, where he was part of then-CEO Robert Crandall’s team, alongside Thomas W. Horton (former Chairman and CEO of American), David C. Cush (CEO of Virgin America), and Ben Baldanza (former CEO of Spirit Airlines).
He joined Northwest Airlines in 1991 and helped create a team to systematically track where the airline was making and losing money. Tracking flight-by-flight profitability at such detail was a first for Northwest.
Parker became CFO of America West Airlines in 1995 after returning to the U.S., and because then-CEO Bill Franke wanted to groom him to be a CEO, Parker rotated through finance, sales, and operations. He was named President and CEO in September 2001, just 10 days before the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Under Parker’s leadership, America West was the first airline to secure post-9/11 federal loan guarantees, saving the airline from a second bankruptcy.
America West and US Airways merged in 2005, with Parker continuing as CEO of the combined company. US Airways made a failed attempt to merge with Delta Air Lines in 2006 while Delta was in bankruptcy protection, meeting with employees and creditors to fight off the hostile bid. Creditors rejected the offer in early 2007. US Airways also pursued mergers with United Airlines in 2008 and again in 2010, but United ultimately merged with Continental Airlines.
In 2012, US Airways launched an effort to merge with American Airlines while its parent company, AMR Corporation, was in bankruptcy. US Airways took the unprecedented step of securing tentative contracts with American’s labor groups while AMR was still restructuring. The deal closed on December 9, 2013, and Parker was named CEO of the combined company, which became the world’s largest airline.