Former AMR chairman, CEO Albert Casey dies at 84

Monday, July 12th 2004, 6:09 am

By: News On 6

DALLAS (AP) _ Albert V. Casey, the former top executive at American Airlines' parent AMR Corp. who helped lead the company through the early days of airline deregulation, has died. He was 84.

Casey died unexpectedly Saturday at his Dallas home, his niece, Mary Casey, said Sunday in a telephone interview. She said Casey had not been ill and the cause of death wasn't immediately known.

Casey, who retired as chairman and chief executive in 1985 after 11 years at the airline, remained on AMR's board of directors until 1991. During his tenure, American moved its headquarters from New York to Fort Worth, Texas, in 1979.

In a statement Sunday, AMR chairman and CEO Gerard J. Arpey said American was ``grateful for his extensive contributions and we will miss his friendship and support.''

A former postmaster general, Casey was appointed to a nine-year term on the U.S. Postal Service Board of Governors by President Bush in August 2002. He also taught at Southern Methodist University's Edwin L. Cox School of Business.

In 1991, former President George H.W. Bush appointed Casey as president and chief executive of the Resolution Trust Corporation, which oversaw failed savings and loans.

The Boston native served as president of the Times Mirror Co. in Los Angeles for eight years before joining AMR.

In his 1997 autobiography, ``Casey's Law: If Something Can Go Right It Should,'' he said, ``there are no easy cut and dried formulas for business success, but dealing with people has to rank among the most important.''