American Airlines plans to restore its systemwide schedule
to 40 percent of its capacity levels compared with a year prior, including
operating more than half of its usual domestic schedule, for July and August.
The carrier said it is seeing "improving demand for air
travel," with its daily passenger load averaging a little more than
110,000 per day in the last days of May. By comparison, it carried an average
of just under 79,000 passengers per day from May 1 through May 23 and only
about 32,000 per day in April. As such, it plans to operate 55 percent of its
domestic schedule in July and August.
The growth is "demand largely for leisure flights right
now," VP of network and schedule planning Brian Znotins said, and the
domestic schedule in those months will focus largely on leisure destinations
such as Florida, cities on the Gulf Coast and mountain destinations. The
carrier has been keeping in touch with corporate customers as to when corporate
travel will resume, but that rebound remains "very much in the infancy
stage," Znotins said.
International service, meanwhile, will resume to about 20
percent of its levels a year ago, according to American. Routes that will
return as of June 4 include between Dallas-Fort Worth and each Amsterdam, Paris
and Frankfurt, between Miami and Antigua, and between both Chicago O'Hare and
New York's John F. Kennedy airports and London Heathrow. Some service that had
been scheduled to return in July, including transatlantic service from
Charlotte and Philadelphia as well as some Caribbean service, has been delayed.
Znotins said cargo demand is largely driving what
international service is restored at the moment, as international travel demand
will be slower to return and will not carry the cost of flights.
American Airlines also announced it will begin reopening
Admiral's Club lounges on June 22, with 10 lounges total, at least one per each
of its hubs, open with pre-packaged snacks and a full-service bar. Lounges at
12 other airports will open as service centers offering travel assistance.