American Airlines touts growth at Chicago’s O’Hare

American Airlines desires you to know it’s dedicated to Chicago.

Asked at an investor convention on Thursday in regards to the service’s plans within the Windy City, Chief Financial Officer Devon May emphasised Chicago’s significance to American. Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport (ORD) was — and is — its third-largest hub, he mentioned repeatedly.

Up till 2020 and the coronavirus pandemic, the service operated some 500 every day departures out of the Midwest airport.

“This year, we’re growing back Chicago,” May mentioned. “We have a huge customer base there… [and] we feel really good about the growth opportunities.”

American not too long ago unveiled seven new or returning routes from Chicago O’Hare, together with to Curacao International Airport (CUR), Roanoke-Blacksburg Regional Airport (ROA) in Virginia, and St. Maarten’s Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM). That’s on prime of long-haul additions this summer time like Naples International Airport (NAP) in Italy.

The airline will function a median of 468 every day departures from O’Hare in June, July and August, schedule knowledge from aviation analytics agency Cirium exhibits.

A longtime hub

American has lengthy boasted a hub at O’Hare. Since the early Nineteen Eighties, it has competed fiercely with hometown United Airlines for dominance at the airport — and the town — together with taking part in a outstanding function within the iconic Chicago vacation film, Home Alone.

But current months have seen the airline’s executives be particularly vocal in regards to the its Chicago presence; it was a outstanding matter on the service’s most up-to-date earnings name.

Prior to the pandemic, American was targeted on rising three hubs, none of which had been O’Hare.

Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT), Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) — bear in mind “DFW 900” and “Charlotte 700 plus”? — and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) had been, as executives mentioned at the time, the airline’s most worthwhile bases. Growth in these cities would profit the whole airline greater than including flights elsewhere, the considering went.

Rarely did American executives point out Chicago in these pre-pandemic days.

Fighting again

Now, although, American faces a bodily risk at O’Hare. It might lose as much as six gates later this 12 months underneath the phrases of an settlement it signed with the Chicago Department of Aviation in 2018. That settlement, which United additionally signed, distributes gates primarily based totally on departures in the course of the prior 12 months.

That means American’s gate depend at O’Hare in 2026 might be set by its schedule in 2024. Cirium schedules present it flew a median of 349 every day departures final 12 months, and 388 departures in the course of the peak summer time months of June, July and August.

For comparability, United flew a median of 481 every day departures from O’Hare in 2024, and 496 departures in the course of the summer time months of June, July and August, Cirium knowledge exhibits.

United, which stands to realize gates at O’Hare subsequent 12 months, has marketed across the metropolis that it’s “Chicago’s #1 Airline” and provided MileagePlus standing matches to different carriers’ frequent flyers.

Read extra: American Airlines punches again in Chicago, in ‘fourth inning’ of O’Hare rebuild

May on Thursday mentioned American’s restoration at O’Hare was hindered by the pilot scarcity that slowed the restoration of its regional companions after the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It came later than we would have liked,” he mentioned of rebuilding American’s O’Hare hub.

While May declined to remark particularly on the gate allocation course of, he did say American plans to “fully utilize” its “assets” — or gates — at O’Hare and develop there sooner or later.

American has sued to cease Chicago from redistributing gates at O’Hare later this 12 months. The case is pending.

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