AMR (AMR) operating unit American Air pulled the ability to buy its tickets from travel site Orbitz.

"Effective December 21, 2010, schedules and fares for flights on American Airlines and American Eagle are no longer available on Orbitz.com or websites powered by Orbitz.com", the company said. Tickets will still be sold through travel agencies and at the firm's own website -- AA.com.

An new international alliance of airlines has gained tentative approval from the U.S. Department of Transportation. The alliance, dubbed "Oneworld Airline," would include partners British Airways (BAIRY), Iberia Airlines, Finnair, Royal Jordanian Airlines and American Airlines (AMR).

Final approval by remains contingent upon certain conditions, including the requirement that the alliance relinquish a percentage of its highly valued takeoff and landing slots at London's Heathrow Airport. Members of the alliance have also offered the possibility of sharing transatlantic routes with competitors in an effort to quell fears of unfair competition which are being expressed from within the European Union.

As the price of oil goes, so goes the U.S. airline sector. Moreover, the prospect of moderating oil prices in 2010 and the fact that the worst travel sector conditions have already been priced into the stock are big reasons why I'm reiterating my buy rating for AMR Corp. (AMR), parent of American Airlines, and first recommended on June 22, 2009, at a price of $4.28.

And so far, the AMR call is paying off: If you bought AMR in June, you're up an impressive 90%. If not, don't fret: there's more upside ahead.

American Airlines had yet another difficult quarter, not unexpected in what has become an incredibly deep travel slump. The carrier's parent company, AMR Corp. (NYSE: AMR), reported a third quarter loss of $359 million, largely because there aren't as many business travelers taking to the skies. Corporate travel budgets in all industries are having an effect on all airlines, including AMR.

Revenue plunged 20.2% year-over-year for the third quarter for the nation's second airline. The loss comes after a $31 million gain last year. This quarter's losses would have been slightly better if write-downs for sold or grounded aircraft were excluded -- the loss would have been $265 million (93 cents a share) on revenue of $5.09 billion. With the write-downs, revenue clocked in at $5.13 billion. Cheaper fuel made the quarter a little easier for AMR to bear, as well, with this expense down 47% year-over-year.

If you think all those new airline fees were a temporary measure to help these beleaguered companies through an economic crisis, you're out of your mind. Now that they've had a taste of how much they can make by charging you for an extra bag or a little more leg room, they're hooked. More important, the fees are making up a meaningful portion of airline revenues and profits, so investors aren't likely to be satisfied with a return to normal – well, they can't. Extra fees are the new "normal."

United Airlines (NASDAQ: UAUA), US Airways (NYSE: LCC) and American Airlines (NYSE: AMR), according to an influential analyst, have run out of options. Jamie Baker of JPMorgan said in a July 20, 2009 report that these companies couldn't do anything to prevent a cash crisis. They only savior available to them would have to be an outside investor. To call the position grim would be optimistic. Unfortunately, it couldn't have come at a worse time.

As Baker was walking the bear into the airline industry, United was starting to celebrate its change in direction. The carrier has improved its on-time rate, according to a USA Today report, and its operations are coming around. Despite the fact that the airline industry has been brutalized by the global recession, the airline has made some progress. Through August, the company's share price doubled, and its ascent has continued in September. So, the company is locked in an ongoing struggle to manage its identity, cope with its past and shape how the world sees it today.

The operational "makeover" has resulted in a reduction of its fleet from 601 jets in 2000 to 386 as of the summer of 2009. In terms of passenger traffic, it's in the #4 spot in the United States – trailing Delta (NYSE: DAL), Southwest (NYSE: LUV) and American. With Q2 revenues off 25.2% year-over-year, however, drastic measures are still necessary.

Japan Airlines (OTC: JALSY) gained 8% Monday morning, thanks to weekend rumors that Delta Airlines (NYSE: DAL) and American Airlines (NYSE: AMR) are vying for a piece of the largest airline in Asia's largest travel market. Both Delta and American hope to use an investment in JAL to gain broader access to the Japanese travel market.

Though JAL refuses to comment on any talks, it's been reported over the weekend that Delta could be interested in buying a minority stake in the airline for several hundred million dollars, while American's bid could be $1 billion or more for a joint venture. At the same time, JAL has mentioned wanting to raise a total of $2.8 billion.

Looks like Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) may have dibs on designing a completely new system for airline reservations. American Airlines (NYSE: AMR) brought the first automated attempt at reservations almost five decades ago -- and oddly, it's still in wide use today. I'm not that sure air travel has changed any in that time. Are you?

The new system -- codenamed Jetstream -- could become the next airline industry standard and would allow HP to really put its EDS purchase from 2008 into good use. This kind of custom industry programming and system creation is EDS's specialty. AMR and HP agreed to develop Jetstream over the next four years, which will be principally aimed at removing costs through improved efficiency and consistency.

There may be new hope for the perpetually ailing airline industry. While I wouldn't expect these companies to become top performers anytime soon, it looks like the best revenue stream is the one nobody's been talking about: change and cancellation fees.

These penalties, which can reach up to $150, bring $2 billion in revenue into the industry annually. According to the Department of Transportation, they were good for $527.6 million in the first quarter -- in the United States alone. This is 3.2% of U.S. airline revenue.

American Airlines parent AMR (NYSE: AMR) raked in $116 million in revenue from these penalties in the first quarter of 2009 -- compared to $108 million from the more highly publicized extra bag fees. For JetBlue (NASDAQ: JBLU), the numbers are smaller (JetBlue, of course, isn't as big as AMR) but no less compelling. By pumping its change and cancellation fee from $100 to $150, the airline scored $32.2 million in Q1 2009, up from $25 million in Q1 2008.