American Airlines Group (NASDAQ: AAL) slashed quarterly estimates and announced the departure of its chief commercial officer, a sign of softening demand and a change of strategy.

Shares of American were down 14% as of 1 p.m. ET, and the news is taking other airlines along for the ride. Shares of Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV) were down as much as 7% on Wednesday and traded down 5% as of 1 p.m. ET.

Airline investors have flown through a lot of turbulence in recent years. The industry was hit hard by the pandemic but enjoyed significant bounce-back demand once vaccines hit the market. The question for the last year has been whether that demand was sustainable, especially in the face of higher interest rates and fears of a weakening economy.

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Source Fool.com