American is leaning more heavily on its Airbus A321XLR fleet across the Atlantic as it scales back parts of its long-haul international network ahead of Boeing 777-300ER retrofits.
The Fort Worth, Texas-based carrier said last week that several winter schedule changes will help support its plan to reconfigure more widebody aircraft with its new Flagship Suite product.
“We will win with customers when we deliver a consistent and elevated experience to travelers flying across our global network,” said American’s chief commercial officer, Nat Pieper, in a memo to employees viewed by AirlineGeeks.
Among the changes, New York JFK-Barcelona will become a year-round route and is set to operate with the A321XLR during the winter season.
Philadelphia-Amsterdam will also see A321XLR service from Feb. 25 through March 27, 2027, while Philadelphia-Edinburgh will transition to the aircraft beginning Oct. 25. Philadelphia-Lisbon is also scheduled to operate with the type from Jan. 5 through Feb. 25, 2027.
At the same time, American is reducing service in several international markets.
Charlotte-Rome and Philadelphia-Athens will end their summer seasons on Oct. 24. Dallas/Fort Worth-Frankfurt will be suspended from Feb. 11 to March 3, while Miami-Paris will not operate during the winter season.
Other markets will also see reduced flying. Los Angeles-Auckland will drop from daily service to four weekly flights in early December, and Miami-Santiago will be reduced to daily service for the winter.
Not all of the changes are cuts. Chicago O’Hare-Paris will be extended through Dec. 1, and Miami-Rio de Janeiro will increase to two daily flights for the full winter season.
Widebody Retrofits
The first updated 777-300ER is expected to begin revenue flights later this year and will feature 70 Flagship Suite seats and 44 premium economy seats per aircraft. American’s entire 777-300ER fleet is slated to feature the new configuration by 2027, Pieper added.
