American Airlines Makes Another Attempt at Increasing Ticket Prices

American Airlines on Thursday raised domestic leisure fares 4%, its second attempt at boosting ticket prices after leading an industrywide fare hike last week that failed.

Analysts said the latest effort to raise fares is the sixth this year and could indicate further increases in business fares.

“It’s just indicative of the fact that there is more demand for air travel out there than supply,” said CS First Boston analyst Tom Schreier.

American, the nation’s second-largest carrier, increased prices on tickets bought seven and 21 days in advance for travel in the United States, except in markets dominated by Northwest Airlines.

A spokesman for AMR Corp., the parent of American, said the increase does not apply to American’s flights in Detroit; Memphis, Tenn.; and Minneapolis-St. Paul, which are Northwest hubs.

Northwest, the nation’s fourth-largest airline, has blocked five attempts this year to raise fares by refusing to match competitors’ increases, including last week’s fare hike by American and Delta Air Lines Inc.

Northwest has been trying to keep passengers from using other carriers in light of possible union strikes, and it recently extended a summer sale that it introduced in mid-May for the ninth time.

Spokesmen for Delta and UAL Corp.’s United Airlines said Thursday that their airlines had not yet decided if they would match American’s increase.

US Airways and Continental Airlines Inc. also did not match the increase.

But analysts said America’s decision to exclude Northwest’s hubs from the latest fare hike could mean this attempt to boost ticket prices will succeed.

“We think it’s been done in such a way that it’s likely to stick,” said PaineWebber airline analyst Sam Buttrick.