Bermuda's temperature guarantee campaign has won over American Airlines, which last year threatened to drop its winter service if the Island didn't do something to improve business.

One of the airline's top executives last night said American would continue service to the Island during the winter months.

He said the campaign had met the airline's ultimatum issued last January to increase the number of passengers to Bermuda or work without it.

"The improvements have been very substantial and we are pleased with the response of the community,'' Mr. Horace Hord, American's marketing director for the Atlanta/Caribbean region, said in a telephone interview from New York.

"Tourism, hotels and private sector business entities pulled together to do a number of things, one of which was the temperature guarantee campaign.'' Mr.

Hord said American's concerns developed when Bermuda-bound planes were scoring low passenger load yields.

"Our main interest was our losses,'' Mr. Hord said. "We were looking for load factors in the area of about 65 percent. At that time, we were probably running about in the mid-50s at best.

"There were some other things we were asking to see an improvement in also, such as stronger advertising campaigns and some special Island-wide or certainly Island-represented promotion to carry through November, December and January.

"We told them they would have to have realised results for 1992. That has been the case.'' Mr. Hord's statement was made during a week when hotel bookings for the winter months remained at or below 1992 levels when the recession was at its worst.

The booking levels prompted questions about the effectiveness of the winter campaign.

The temperature guarantee scheme was created over last spring and summer by a tourism industry group chaired by Mr. Paul Leseur.

"American Airlines was the catalyst,'' said Dr. Grant Gibbons, who represented the Chamber of Commerce.

"We were charged with trying to put together ideas and suggestions for making the winter season a little more appealing to visitors.

"Rather than dealing with it in a piecemeal sort of way, we were trying to tie everyone together.'' The scheme offers visitors at participating hotels a 20 percent discount on their room rate for the day if the temperature fails to reach 68 degrees and discounts at 40 stores throughout the Island.

Mr. Hord praised the effectiveness of the scheme which he said was successful because it used the word `guarantee', which consumers like to see; and it calls attention to the fact that Bermuda is a year-round destination as opposed to the perception that it is a summer resort only.

"We would say that overall tourism leaders took a very aggressive position and accepted my visit as a challenge,'' Mr. Hord said.

"They were quite pleased with the fact that the challenge was presented and have been able to collectively group together for improvement.

"I have to say that our primary concern was American Airlines. Secondary was that of the destination as a whole. We have a commitment to the destination that is for certain.'' Mr. Hord added that beginning April 18, American's daily service from New York's Kennedy Airport will increase to two flights a day. Daily flights from Raleigh-Durham in North Carolina will also begin at that time. See Editoiral -- Page 4 Dr. Grant Gibbons.