American Airlines, Inc. - Retirement 401(k) Review & Grade
American Airlines, Inc. 401(k) Plan
Fort Worth, TXTransportation & Warehousing93,647 active participantsPlan year 2024
Estimate from the plan's Form 5500 filing · How we grade
$4,489Employer $ per active participant
$7,673Employee $ saved per active participant
0.06%Direct admin cost, % of plan assets
$16.2BNet plan assets, end of year
$147,905Average balance per account
Score breakdown
- Employer generosity41.1 / 5082th percentile for employer $ per participant
- Low cost16.2 / 2565th percentile for low admin cost vs. same-size plans
- Employee saving13.7 / 1591th percentile for employee $ per participant
- Plan features3 / 10Default investment
- Red-flag deductions-3 pts1 issue reported on the filing
Total score71 / 100 · Grade B
This plan vs. peers
Peers: Transportation & Warehousing plans with 10,000+ active participants (46 plans).
| Measure | Percentile |
|---|---|
| Employer $ per participant | 82th |
| Lower admin cost | 65th |
| Employee saving | 91th |
| Peers that auto-enroll | 30% |
Red flags from the filing
Corrective distributions: the plan refunded $7,282 in contributions, which usually means it failed annual nondiscrimination testing.
What to do if you're in this plan
- American Airlines, Inc. - Retirement put in about $4,489 per active participant, more than the typical peer ($1,415). Contribute at least enough to collect the full match. Skipping it leaves part of your pay on the table.
- The filing shows total dollars, not the match formula. Ask HR for the Summary Plan Description so you know the exact match and vesting schedule.
- Fund expense ratios aren't in the filing. Look them up in your 404(a)(5) fee disclosure and favor low-cost index or target-date funds.
- Changing jobs? You can usually leave the money in the plan, move it to your new employer's plan, or roll it into an IRA. Don't cash out: you'd owe taxes and possibly a 10% penalty.
The raw numbers from the filing
| Employer contributions | $420,418,118 |
| Participant (employee) contributions | $718,570,857 |
| Other contributions (incl. rollovers in) | $29,302,928 |
| Administrative expenses paid from the plan | $9,110,880 |
| Investment advisory & management fees | $5,521,308 |
| Other admin expenses | $161,032 |
| Benefits paid out | $1,523,322,624 |
| Net assets, start / end of year | $14.7B / $16.2B |
| Active participants, start / end of year | 93,397 / 93,897 |
| Participants with account balances | 109,470 |
| Auto-enrollment (feature code 2S) | Not reported |
| Auditor | Cbiz Cpas PC |
Largest service providers (Schedule C)
| Financial Engines | $5,521,308 reported compensation |
| Fidelity Investments Institutional | $3,851,850 reported compensation |
Source: DOL EFAST2 Form 5500 filing, acknowledgment ID 20251013090518NAL0001566176001, received 2025-10-13, EIN 13-1502798, plan #013, plan year 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31. Verify at efast.dol.gov.
Other 401(k) plans filed under this employer's EIN
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