American Airlines has applied to the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) for seven weekly flights at Tokyo-Haneda International Airport to be available beginning October 29, 2023. The airline plans to provide nonstop service between New York and Haneda.
In September, United also applied to the Department to acquire slots at Haneda for nonstop service to Houston-Intercontinental. Both airlines are taking advantage of the slot return of Delta Air Lines’ Portland-Haneda service that will not start at the end of October. On the other hand, American has no objection to United’s request for five weekly frequencies from Hawaiian Airlines.
If realized, American’s service would be operated on Boeing 777-300ER or 777-200ER aircraft, which are the only widebody aircraft based at its New York hub. Previously, American operated between New York and Haneda, the service was discontinued on December 1, 2013, due to poor profitability from operating on very restricted schedules that limited connections to Asian markets.
American’s proposed service will provide competitive options for travelers in the New York metropolitan area, as well as the region’s Japanese diaspora. In addition, customers can access destinations beyond Haneda through Japan Airlines, American’s transpacific partner.
In 2019, the Department allocated two slots at Haneda for a new service to Los Angeles and the transfer of one of Dallas/Fort Worth services from Narita. American currently offers 43,524 seats per week between Haneda and the United States.
See also: Delta cancels plans to fly between Portland and Tokyo, as United looks to grow at Haneda
