Dallas-based American Airlines has decided to alter one of its long-haul international routes, but instead of changing a schedule or aircraft, it is changing the hub it will operate from. Starting Oct. 29, 2023, they will be moving its JFK-Doha route to its Philadelphia hub.
The route will continue to operate daily and on board the carrier’s Boeing 777-300ER. This does make sense for the carrier from a connection standpoint, as Philadelphia does offer more connections in the United States on American, as well as the fact that Philadelphia is already the airline’s main transatlantic hub, which this Qatar route will strengthen.
American will be competing with its partner Qatar, as that airline already offers a daily nonstop flight between these two cities. But, given that they are already partners, they now offer a second daily flight, one on each airline, that can seamlessly connect passengers to each other’s networks; American’s in Philadelphia and Qatar’s in Doha.
The move of American’s Doha route away from JFK could be due to the airline terminating its alliance between them and JetBlue. As American did start the Doha route about six months before the American-JetBlue partnership began in early 2021, and JFK is one of JetBlues main hubs.
