<p>FORT WORTH, Texas &mdash; American Airlines said Thursday that it lost $1.25 billion in the first quarter and continued to slash costs, including delaying delivery of new jets as it waits for air travel to recover from the pandemic.</p>
<p>Chairman and CEO Doug Parker said the airline continues to see signs that demand for tickets is improving.</p>
<p>American said it burned through $27 million in cash each day in the quarter, down from $30 million a day in the fourth quarter of 2020. The airline said it reduced 2021 costs by more than $1.3 billion, including a new round of voluntary buyouts that will result in 1,600 employees leaving the company.</p>
<p>Leisure travel within the U.S. has picked up recently, with about 1.4 million travelers going through airports each day this month. Still, that remains about 40% below the pre-pandemic pace of 2019.</p>
<p>With less traffic, American reached a deal with Boeing to delay delivery of 23 737 Max jets until 2023 and 2024 and convert five of those to a larger version of the plane. American expects to take 14 Max jets over the next 12 months.</p>
<p>The first-quarter loss was roughly in line with Wall Street expectations. Excluding federal payroll aid and other temporary items, American said it lost $4.32 per share. The average estimate of 17 analysts surveyed by FactSet was a loss of $4.30 per share.</p>
<p>A year ago, when the pandemic was just starting to hit the U.S., American lost $2.24 billion. </p>
<p>Revenue was $4.01 billion, just shy of the $4.04 billion forecast by analysts and down 53% from $8.52 billion a year ago.</p>
<p>Shares of Texas-based American Airlines Group Inc. rose 2% in trading before the opening bell.</p>