American aircraft crowd in at Charlotte Douglas International airport in December 2024. (Photo by Peter Zay/Anadolu)Anadolu via Getty ImagesOnce again, American Airlines executives will have to defend themselves on an earnings call. The familiar charge is that American is a distant third in the competition between the three global U.S. airlines.On Delta’s Oct. 9 earnings call, CEO Ed Bastian said, “We expect 60% of the overall industry profits to be driven by Delta Air Lines. Expect the rest of it probably ...