Municipal debt backed by airlines takes off

[NEW YORK] Municipal debt backed by American Airlines' parent has gained more than 500 per cent in two years, rewarding investors who withstood AMR Corp's bankruptcy filing and a failed suit to block a merger that would create the world's biggest carrier.

Munis backed by airlines and sold to finance facilities such as gates, and debt issued to pay for airports' own projects are benefiting as an expanding US economy spurs travel spending, said Vikram Rai, a strategist at Citigroup Inc. Airport muni debt is having its best rally since the start of 2012, Bank of America Merrill Lynch data show.

Some American Airlines securities are trading at record highs after reaching as low as 18.9 cents on the dollar two years ago after AMR's filing, data compiled by Bloomberg show. A US bankruptcy judge last week approved a merger with US Airways Group that may …