American Airlines Just Cut 27 Routes
Most of the cuts impact New York.
With the holidays approaching, many airlines are bracing for an influx of travelers. Amid reports that millions are expected to take to the skies, American Airlines cut routes—many of which fly out of New York airports—in an effort to optimize its flying schedule.
According to Insider, in preparation for 2022, the airline dropped 27 routes. Of them, 18 fly out of New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport or LaGuardia Airport. The other nine include service to Canada and some service out of Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Charlotte, North Carolina.
Regional routes cut by American include Boston to Raleigh, North Carolina, and Philadelphia to Charleston, West Virginia. American will still operate out of those hubs, providing service to other areas.
The cuts hit new York the hardest, but Canada is also taking a massive hit. The country will lose five American Airlines routes from the United States. The cut includes a full-on pullout from Ottowa, the capital of Canada, according to American Airlines and The Points Guy. In addition to no longer flying to Ottowa, American has cut flights from Phoenix to Calgary, Alberta, and Vancouver, British Columbia. Travelers will no longer be able to fly from JFK to Montreal or Toronto either.
The cuts aren't meant to inconvenience travelers but rather to help them get to the most important places to them. However, some travelers will face issues, and American Airlines is doing its best to remedy those.
"Over the weekend, American optimized its flying schedule to better connect customers with the destinations most important to them," a spokesperson for American told Insider. "Part of that process resulted in the winding down of a handful of routes, including our dedicated shuttle service. We're proactively reaching out to customers affected by these changes to offer alternate travel arrangements."
American recently announced that it was working on strengthening its partnership with JetBlue, its Northeast Alliance partner, amid legal backlash from the Department of Justice (DOJ). Per a lawsuit filed in September, the agency claims the alliance violates antitrust laws. The DOJ believes the alliance will negatively affect customers and competition. Regardless, the two airlines have been increasing operations in the Northeast since July 2020. An American spokesperson told Insider that via its alliance with JetBlue, the pair have the most frequent flights out of New York even after the 27 cut routes.
JetBlue will operate 10 of the 18 routes American dropped out of New York.