American Airlines’ 149,000-SF complex set for Fort Worth

FORT WORTH – The $88 million, 149,000-sf Robert W. Baker Integrated Operations Center will break ground today at 4700 American Blvd. The facility is next to American Airlines Southern Reservations Center and C.R. Smith Museum in Fort Worth.

The employees who will ultimately work in the two-story facility will manage a global, complex and fast-moving network of people, aircraft, airports, facilities and airspace.

Specific functions of the new Integrated Operations Center will include Flight Dispatch, Crew Scheduling, Maintenance Operations Control, Weight and Balance Planning, System Customer Service, Flight Planning Support, and Emergency Planning and Response. The building has been designed to withstand winds associated with an EF3 tornado (165-185 mph).

The City of Fort Worth is offering a $6.5 million incentive package for the building. The operations facility will be the nerve center for American’s global network and will house more than 1,400 employees.

The center will oversee 1 million flights a year with more than 140 million customers. The facility consolidates US Airways and American’s operations into one building.

Some employees at US Airways facilities in Phoenix and Pittsburgh will be relocated to North Texas to work at the new center. The facility is scheduled to open by the third quarter 2015.