On Sept. 4, 2003, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services lowered its ratings on selected aircraft-backed on American Airlines Inc. (see list). Corporate credit ratings and other debt ratings were not changed. The downgrades reflect reduced aircraft values, and thus collateral coverage for some issues of enhanced equipment trust certificates (EETCs), and revised estimates of airlines' likelihood of accepting, renegotiating, or rejecting particular financings in potential bankruptcy scenarios. Declines in asset protection were more limited and selective than those in factored into previous reviews of EETCs, and there are signs that the long decline in aircraft values has bottomed out or begun to reverse for some models. Standard&Poor's on June 20, 2003, raised its ratings on AMR Corp. (B-/Negative/--)
