On the heels of its breakup with CRJ-200 operator Air Wisconsin, American is also detailing plans to end all 50-seat service from Chicago this summer. This shake-up includes a pivot away from Piedmont’s Embraer E145 aircraft.
In June, the airline will wind down 50-seat service from its O’Hare hub. According to Cirium Diio schedule data, the last batch of E145 flights will operate on June 4.
Piedmont exclusively operates the E145 aircraft and is a wholly owned subsidiary of American. The airline began serving regional routes from Chicago in 2020.
A spokesperson from American confirmed the shift away from single-class jets to AirlineGeeks on Monday. All flights operated by the carrier or its regional partners from Chicago will operate on dual-class regional aircraft featuring premium cabins beginning in June, they said.
Backfilling the CRJ-200
Last week, American and Air Wisconsin announced plans to end their regional capacity agreement in April. Air Wisconsin primarily serves Midwest cities from Chicago, along with a few routes from Philadelphia.
To backfill this CRJ-200 flying, Envoy, Piedmont, and SkyWest will increase their footprint from Chicago. In addition, the carrier’s other subsidiary, PSA, will start flying CRJ-700s from O’Hare later this year.
Piedmont’s ramp-up in Chicago flying will be short-lived, though, as more two-class aircraft enter the market between April and June.
The spokesperson added that no routes will be canceled following Air Wisconsin’s exit, with plans to “increase flights” from Chicago on other regional carriers.
Following the change, only American’s Charlotte, North Carolina, and Philadelphia hubs will offer flights with 50-seat E145 aircraft. By February, Piedmont plans to have 70 E145s in service as aircraft return from long-term storage programs.
