Not just American cities are experiencing a loss of aircraft service during the pandemic.
Over the weekend, American Airlines submitted plans to withdraw from three Latin American markets.
American is cutting back on the following cities:
• Culiacan, Mexico (CUL), effective Feb. 28, 2023.
• Samana, Dominican Republic (AZS), effective May 3, 2023.
• San Andrés Island, Colombia (ADZ), effective May 3, 2023.
Previously, American Eagle's regional affiliates that operated on behalf of American served all three markets.
SkyWest Airlines operated flights from Phoenix to Culiacan, and Envoy Air, a fully owned regional subsidiary, traveled from Miami to Samana and San Andres Island.
It's interesting to note that during the epidemic, American's network launched a twice-weekly service in all three markets.
March 2021 saw the addition of flights to Culiacan, June 2021 saw the addition of flights to Samana, and December 2021 saw the addition of flights to San Andres Island.
The airline blamed the departures on weak demand and the pilot shortage in a statement announcing the cuts.
“American Airlines has made the painful choice to terminate service in San Andrés, Colombia; Samana, Dominican Republic; and Culiacan, Mexico, this spring due to weak demand in these markets and the regional pilot shortage affecting the airline sector.
We'll proactively get in touch with consumers who are planning to travel and present them with options.”
American's most recent station departures occur at a time when major airlines are struggling to fill positions, particularly in the ranks of their pilots.
For regional affiliates that have historically functioned as stepping stones for aspiring pilots hoping to jump-start their careers and eventually work at big U.S. carriers, the pilot shortage has been particularly difficult.
Airlines are working hard to create a pipeline for aspiring pilots, but the problem won't be solved quickly.
In situations like this, the shortage has led to carriers leaving small communities.
Actually, one of the reasons American has had to park regional planes during the pandemic is that there aren't enough pilots available to operate them.
While American's short-haul international connectivity is the main emphasis of its most recent network update, the airline has lost a whopping 18 local locations during the epidemic, several of which were due to the pilot shortage.
The airline increased the number of U.S. locations on its increasing list of cuts earlier this year by including Columbus, Georgia; Del Rio; and Long Beach.
According to Cerium schedules and research carried out by aviation consultancy company Ailevon Pacific, 65 domestic airports have lost service by one of the major U.S. airlines (American, Delta, and United) as a result of the epidemic.
Of the major U.S. carriers, United has drawn the most attention for a significant reduction in regional connectivity across the country, which has reached 36 markets and counting.
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