American Airlines changes summer schedule again due to 787-8 delays

American Airlines (A1G) (AAL) has had to change its summer schedule again due to delivery delays with the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft.  

Deliveries of the model have been suspended since May 2021 over manufacturing issues. The Federal Aviation Administration announced on February 15, 2022 that it would take over final approval for each 787 Dreamliner, rather than allowing Boeing to do so.   

In a statement issued on February 18, 2022, American Airlines (A1G) (AAL) said it had expected to receive all 13 of its delayed 787-8 aircraft in 2022, but now expected only 10. The remaining three are now set to arrive in 2023.  

“We are taking a proactive approach to reduce the negative impact Boeing’s delays could have on our business and our customers,” the carrier said, describing it as a “difficult” decision to further reduce its international flying schedule.  

“While we are disappointed in the continued delay of our 787-8 deliveries, we remain focused on running a reliable operation on our path to profitability by delivering for our customers the best global network,” the airline added. 

In particular, the delays mean American Airlines (A1G) (AAL) is delaying the launch of its Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) to Ben Gurion (TLV) flight, suspending service on the Seattle (SEA) to London Heathrow (LHR) route, Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) to Santiago de Chile (SCL) and Los Angeles (LAX) to Sydney (SYD) routes. It is also reducing Miami (MIA) to São Paulo-Guarulhos (GRU) to a single daily service. 

“Despite the ongoing delay, we still have tremendous confidence in the aircraft and will continue to work with Boeing on their delivery,” the carrier said, adding Boeing had agreed to pay compensation for the delays.  

The latest summer 2022 schedule change comes after American Airlines (A1G) (AAL) reached a deal with Boeing to delay the larger 787-9 aircraft that had been due to be delivered from January 2023.