AMR To Simplify Domestic Schedule, Reassign Airplanes Wednesday November 3, 5:38 PM EST NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--AMR Corp. (AMR) plans to simplify its domestic flight schedule during the next five months by cutting the amount of connections flight attendants and pilots make each day. Instead, the world's largest airline aims to keep pilots and, as much as possible, flight attendants on the same airplanes all day, rather than connecting to other flights. The plans, scheduled to be implemented by April, would cut the number of delayed flights because one day would have less of a ripple effect on other flights. AMR is the parent of American Airlines. The airline's senior vice president of customer service, Ralph Richardi, said in a speech to analysts Wednesday he also plans to cut the number of airplane types that fly out of each location, particularly hubs. For example, he will move all of the airline's 737s to the Miami hub, so that none fly out of the Chicago hub. The switch will consolidate maintenance of each fleet type, boosting productivity of maintenance workers and cutting the amount of inventory needed at each facility. A further improvement to maintenance efficiency should come as the airline keeps pilots and flight attendants on the same aircraft all day, and stops borrowing planes from other routes to fill in for late flights. That's because the re-routing AMR has done to accommodate for late flights often changes the final destination a particular plane will go to for the night. That has made it difficult to schedule overnight maintenance on particular aircraft, because the plane may end up in different location than the mechanic or the parts, Richardi said. Richardi said it will take until April to implement the simplification because some pilots may have to train on new aircraft, particularly 737 pilots that live in Chicago and don't move to Miami with the airplanes. The airline is currently going through a bidding process with pilots for new routes. The switch should cut the amount of pilot reserves the airline needs, Richardi said. He said around 200 pilots will retire next year, but the airline won't have to recall furloughed pilots to fill those positions. For passengers, the result of tests of the simplification have been fewer delays, although the delays that still occur are often longer, Richardi said. The changes are things that employees have been suggesting for years. And AMR isn't the only airline to make such changes. Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL) is planning similar shifts when it reworks its Atlanta hub next year. Roger EWROPS