Chicago officials confident American will keep hub at O’Hare

• Reprints

Updated: January 1, 2012 8:18AM

While travelers at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport voiced concern about American Airlines’ bankruptcy filing Tuesday, Chicago officials expressed confidence the airline is taking necessary steps to ensure its future here.

American provides more than 30 percent of passenger service at O’Hare.

Chicago Aviation Commissioner Rosemarie Andolino said the city has been reassured that O’Hare will remain a key hub for the airline.

But Chicago could be a target for service cuts, according to Seth Kaplan, an analyst for Airline Weekly. American has better competitive positions in Dallas and Miami that it can be expected to safeguard, he said.

“There are no changes to flights expected at O’Hare” in the immediate future, said an American Airlines spokeswoman. “It’s the second largest hub, our gateway to Europe and Asia and one of our five cornerstone markets.”

American has 68 gates at O’Hare and nearly 500 daily departures there, including American Eagle and other regional jets, according to the airline and the Chicago Department of Aviation.

American’s bankruptcy filing shows it owes nearly $3.5 million to the city of Chicago and nearly $109 million to holders of bonds used to build its terminal at O’Hare. American’s parent company AMR Corp. owes Chicago-based Boeing Co. more than $15 million.

American said its AAdvantage frequent-flier program would not be affected by the filing.

“Miles are safe,” said Gary Leff, co-founder of frequent flier site MilePoint.

Contributing: Francine Knowles