Robert L. Crandall

Robert L. Crandall, of Rhode Island, was nominated September 12, 2003, by President George W. Bush to be a Member of the AMTRAK Reform Board.

Crandall's nomination was sent to the U.S. Senate October 14, 2003, and the White House lists the status of his nomination as pending. However, his nomination was not resubmitted for consideration after U.S. presidential election, 2004.

AMTRAK Will Never Be Profitable
In a November 6, 2003, confirmation hearing with the Senate Commerce Committee, Crandall, "who described himself as 'a bit of a train buff,' told the Senate panel that Amtrak will never be profitable and requires a 'steady source' of funding. 'Let's spend some money to fix the tracks and save some money on airports and allow the airlines to use their planes in more productive ways,' Crandall said. 'The net benefits might be very favorable.' Crandall said, 'trains and planes are not really competitors,'" UTU International reported.

Profiles
Crandall, a native of Westerly, R.I., is a 1957 graduate of the University of Rhode Island and received a master's degree in business administration from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School in 1960. 

The Wall Street Journal called Crandall 'the man who changed the way the world flies.' "During his 25-year tenure at American Airlines, Crandall was instrumental in introducing several changes which revolutionized the travel industry." 

Crandall is a member of the board of the Halliburton Company and Chairman Emeritus, AMR Corporation/American Airlines, Inc., (engaged primarily in the air transportation business). He is Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, AMR Corporation and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of American Airlines, Inc., 1985-1998, and President of American Airlines, Inc., 1985-1995.

Crandall joined the Halliburton Company Board in 1986. He is Chairman of the Nominating and Corporate Governance and member of the Audit, the Compensation and the Management Oversight Committees. He serves as a Director of Celestica, Inc., American Express Company, Clear Channel Communications, Inc., and Anixter International Inc.

In his 1997 book Master of His Mistakes, author Don Phillips wrote that Crandall was "the roughtest, toughest competitor in one of the world's most competitive industries. But even the bad-boy genius of the airline business can make mistakes, and Crandall has made some big ones. His 1992 value pricing scheme helped send airline profits into a tailspin that lasted years. Now, as he approaches retirement, Crandall has a shot at realizing his driving ambition: to position American as the dominant U.S. carrier for the next 20 years."