American Airlines Employees Come Together In Support Of Sky Ball XII And The Airpower Foundation

More than $1.9 million raised at annual event supporting U.S. military members, veterans and their families

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Oct 27, 2014, 04:07 ET

FORT WORTH, Texas, Oct. 27, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- American Airlines Sky Ball XII, an event honoring U.S. military members, veterans and their families, raised more than $1.9 million for the Airpower Foundation. This year's festivities concluded with a black-tie gala on Saturday, Oct. 25 at American's Hangar 5 at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.

American Airlines Sky Ball XII raises $1.9 million for the Airpower Foundation

More than 1,000 American Airlines employees volunteered their time to make Sky Ball XII a success. Proceeds from the event will enable the Airpower Foundation to provide much needed support to nonprofit organizations and military families throughout the United States.

"The Airpower Foundation is extremely grateful to American Airlines for its support of Sky Ball XII," said Roman Palomares, chairman of the Airpower Foundation. "Over the past four years, the American Airlines Sky Ball has raised more than $5.1 million to benefit many deserving military charitable organizations. As the title sponsor of Sky Ball, American and its more than 1,000 employee volunteers have truly made the difference in our ability to support our nation's service members and their families."

Sky Ball XII included a special tribute to those who have served in Korea, as well as a branch-of-service salute to the United States Navy. The event was attended by more than 2,300 people, including 17 Medal of Honor recipients, wounded warriors, military officials and other distinguished guests, including actors Gary Sinise and John Ratzenberger.

Highlights of the evening included performances by Christopher Cross, "America's Tenor" Steve Amerson and Gary Sinise & the Lt. Dan Band, a four-course dinner prepared by Chef Robert Irvine, military and American Airlines aircraft on static display, and the donation of an exoskeleton walking device to the Dallas VA Medical Center.

The Saturday night gala was the culmination of a series of events over three days that included a veteran-focused career expo and professional-development seminar, educational outreach programs, a Salute to Citizen Heroes concert featuring The Randy Rogers Band and Lee Greenwood, and the world premiere of the PBS documentary "Navy SEALs – Their Untold Story."

Sky Ball XII set a fundraising record of $1.9 million. Proceeds from this year's event will allow the Airpower Foundation to assist organizations such as Snowball Express, an annual gathering of nearly 2,000 children and spouses of fallen military members, and Carrick Brain Centers, which treats service members impacted by post-traumatic stress and significant brain injuries.

American Airlines has a long history of supporting U.S. service members, veterans and their families. Military and veterans programs are a strong priority for American and its employees, reflecting the airline's commitment to honor the bravery and dedication of those who serve our country. More than 60 percent of American's pilots and 10 percent of all the airline's employees are active service members or veterans. American supports members of the military, veterans and their families through contributions to nonprofit organizations and employee engagement in a wide variety of events and activities. For more information, please visit aa.com/military.

About American Airlines Group
American Airlines Group (NASDAQ: AAL) is the holding company for American Airlines and US Airways. Together with wholly owned and third-party regional carriers operating as American Eagle and US Airways Express, the airlines operate an average of nearly 6,700 flights per day to 339 destinations in 54 countries from its hubs in Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix and Washington, D.C. The American Airlines AAdvantage and US Airways Dividend Miles programs allow members to earn miles for travel, vacation packages, car rentals, hotel stays and everyday purchases. Members of both programs can redeem miles for tickets as well as upgrades to First Class and Business Class. In addition, AAdvantage members can redeem miles for vacation packages, car rentals, hotel stays and retail products. American is a founding member of the oneworld alliance, whose members and members-elect serve nearly 1,000 destinations with 14,250 daily flights to 150 countries. Connect with American on Twitter @AmericanAir and Facebook.com/AmericanAirlines and follow US Airways on Twitter @USAirways.

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SOURCE American Airlines