DALLAS (October 12, 2012)—Daniel Garton, the CEO of American Eagle, told The Associated Press he expects that the regional affiliate of American Airlines will still be sold or spun off as a separate company after American emerges from bankruptcy protection.

American's parent, AMR Corp., twice tried to unload American Eagle, then shelved the idea when it filed for Chapter 11 protection last November.

Garton said AMR will revisit the issue and that the conclusion will likely be the same, that American Eagle, which serves Waco and Killeen, will be better off as a separate company.

American believes it can save money by getting regional airlines to bid for its connecting-flight business rather than keeping the work within the AMR family at Eagle.