MIAMI — American Airlines (AA) announced on March 12 additional adjustments to its summer schedule in response to low passenger demand due to COVID-19. Though the carrier will continue to fly to/from Europe for seven more days mainly for staff, it will reduce flights to South America.
The company plans to reduce its international capacity for the summer season by 34% in comparison to last year’s summer schedule. It is also making a 50% reduction in its April trans-Atlantic capacity.
It is worth noting that while American announced the suspension of flights to Argentina, all deferred flights are expected to resume as early as May 7.
In addition, AA announced that it would prescind of its Boeing 767s’ services this May and will do the same with 757s through summer 2021. The airplanes were delivered to the airline in 1993 and were commonly operated on the aforementioned trans-Atlantic routes.
Complementing its reduction strategy, AA has also grounded 14 of its refurbished Boeing 737-800NGs.
Here are AA’s schedule changes:
Europe
- Continue operating flights from Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW), New York City (JFK), and Miami (MIA) to Barcelona (BCN), Madrid (MAD) and Paris (CDG) for up to seven days
- Suspending flights from Charlotte (CLT) and Philadelphia (PHL) to Amsterdam (AMS), Frankfurt (FRA), MAD, Munich (MUC) and Zurich (ZRH) on Friday, March 13, as CLT and PHL are not government-approved gateways
- Suspending service from Raleigh/Durham, North Carolina (RDU) to London (LHR)
- Reducing service from JFK, DFW, and Chicago (ORD) to LHR
- Delaying the start of some seasonal routes to early May
South America
- Suspending service from MIA, JFK, DFW, LAX to Buenos Aires (EZE) and ending service from MIA to Cordoba, Argentina (COR)
- Suspending service from DFW and LAX to São Paulo (GRU)
- Suspending service from DFW to Santiago (SCL)
According to AA, these capacity reductions assume no slot waivers are in place. At airports where demand exceeds airfield and/or terminal capacity, access is governed by slots that grant airlines permission to take off and land at specific times.
Due to low demand associated with COVID-19, AA has requested temporary relief from this usage requirement — otherwise known as requesting a slot waiver — to better align capacity with demand without the risk of losing valuable takeoff and landing slots for the future.
The airline also announced that it has offered to waive change fees for customers who purchased tickets prior to March 11 for travel to Europe, including the United Kingdom, through May 31.
Updated Europe schedules:
| Origin | Destination | Schedule change | Expected resumption of service |
|---|---|---|---|
| CLT | Frankfurt (FRA) | Suspended March 13 through May 6 | May 7 |
| CLT | Munich (MUC) | Suspended March 13 through May 6 | May 7 |
| DFW | Rome (FCO) | Seasonal start delayed | May 7 |
| DFW | FRA | Suspended March 19 through May 6 | May 7 |
| DFW | London (LHR) | Reduced from four daily flights to three | May 7 |
| DFW | Madrid (MAD) | Suspended March 19 through May 6 | May 7 |
| DFW | Paris (CDG) | Suspended March 19 through May 6 | May 7 |
| JFK | Barcelona (BCN) | Suspended March 19 through May 6 | May 7 |
| JFK | FCO | Seasonal start delayed | May 7 |
| JFK | London (LHR) | Reduced from four daily flights to three | May 7 |
| JFK | MAD | Suspended March 19 through June 3 | June 4 |
| JFK | Milan (MXP) | Suspended through May 6 | May 7 |
| JFK | CDG | Suspended March 19 through May 6 | May 7 |
| MIA | BCN | Suspended March 19 through May 6 | May 7 |
| MIA | CDG | Suspended March 19 through June 3 | June 4 |
| MIA | MAD | Suspended March 19 through May 6 | May 7 |
| MIA | MXP | Suspended through May 6 | May 7 |
| ORD | FCO | Seasonal start delayed | June 4 |
| ORD | LHR | Reduced from four daily flights to three | May 7 |
| PHL | Amsterdam (AMS) | Suspended March 13 through May 6 | May 7 |
| PHL | CDG | Suspended March 13 through May 6 | May 7 |
| PHL | FCO | Suspended through May 6 | May 7 |
| PHL | MAD | Suspended March 13 through May 6 | May 7 |
| PHL | Zurich (ZRH) | Suspended March 13 through May 6 | May 7 |
| RDU | LHR | Suspended March 19 through May 6 | May 7 |
Updated South America schedules:
| Origin | Destination | Schedule change | Expected resumption of service |
|---|---|---|---|
| DFW | Buenos Aires (EZE) | Suspended March 16 through June 3 | June 4 |
| DFW | São Paulo (GRU) | Suspended March 19 through June 3 | June 4 |
| DFW | Santiago (SCL) | Suspended March 19 through June 3 | June 4 |
| LAX | EZE | Suspended March 16 through October 24 | October 25 |
| LAX | GRU | Suspended March 19 through October 24 | October 25 |
| JFK | EZE | Suspended March 16 through June 3 | June 4 |
| MIA | EZE | Suspended March 16 through May 6 | May 7 |
| MIA | Cordoba, Argentina (COR) | Service discontinued |
Due to the schedule changes, it is not surprising that AA is experiencing high call volume. As a way to take care of its customers as quickly as possible, the airline offers the possibility to cancel flights online and before December 31, 2020, to rebook trips.
