FORT WORTH, Texas — This story originally appeared in the Dallas Business Journal.
As the summer heats up, American Airlines expects a return of leisure travel. With this in mind, the Fort-Worth-based airline announced more than 150 new summer routes Wednesday.
Dallas Fort Worth International Airport will see two new routes; one to Bangor, Maine and another to Burlington, Vt.
The route to Bangor will be flown on Airbus A319s on Saturdays from June 5 to Aug. 14, and then daily between Aug. 15 and Nov. 6. The route to Burlington will be Saturday-only service between July 3 and Nov. 6 and flown on Embraer E175s.
With what is expected to be a busy summer of travel, the airline estimates it will fly more than 90 percent of its domestic capacity compared to summer 2019.
International demand has been slower to recover, according to American. Compared to the same period in 2019, the airline projected international capacity to be down roughly 20 percent this summer.
“Throughout the pandemic, our trademark has been to build a schedule based on what customers tell us they want and need,” said Brian Znotins, American’s Vice President of Network Planning, in a prepared statement. “And today, they are telling us they’re eager to get back to travel. With our summer schedule, we can offer customers the best network and continue welcoming them safely back to the skies.”
After a horrendous year for air travel, the airline was set to furlough up to 13,000 employees this spring. That changed in early March when Chairman and CEO Doug Parker said, “there aren't going to be any furloughs at American Airlines in April and with vaccinations on the rise, hopefully never again" after the U.S. government passed another aid packaged that included money allocated to the airlines.
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