American Boeing 787 Delivery Delays Lead To Summer Route Cuts

American Airlines has revealed plans to scale back its transatlantic summer schedule due to ongoing Boeing 787 delivery delays. This is a familiar story, as American did exactly the same thing in 2024, and 2023, and 2022, and… well, you get the idea.

American is experiencing Boeing 787 delays

American Airlines already has a large fleet of nearly 60 Boeing 787s, between the 787-8 and 787-9 variant. The airline has another 30 787-9s on order, which are supposed to be in an ultra-premium configuration, and feature the new business class product.

However, Boeing has been struggling with actually delivering new aircraft on schedule, which is a challenge that virtually all Boeing customers have been dealing with. It’s true of the 737 MAX, the 787, and of course the 777X.

American is seemingly coming to terms with the fact that some new aircraft won’t be here in time for summer, and as a result, the airline has just loaded a schedule change.

American trims summer 2025 long haul routes

As reported by @xJonNYC, American has just loaded a schedule change for summer, whereby we’ll see quite a few route reductions. While American won’t cease service to any destination as a result of these cuts, we are seeing some service suspensions and reductions. Specifically:

• American will suspend its Miami (MIA) to Paris (CDG) route between May 6 and October 25, 2025; this was supposed to be a new year-round route for American, but will now launch in the winter season
• American will suspend its Dallas (DFW) to Frankfurt (FRA) route between June 5 and July 5, 2025
• American will suspend its New York (JFK) to Madrid (MAD) route between July 5 and August 5, 2025
• American will reduce frequencies between Dallas (DFW) and London (LHR) and between New York (JFK) and London (LHR) in May 2025
• American will reduce frequencies between Philadelphia (PHL) and Rome (FCO) and between Dallas (DFW) and Honolulu (HNL) in June through August 2025

Customers impacted by these schedule changes should receive a schedule change notice, and will be routed through other hubs (probably primarily through London, with an intra-Europe connection on British Airways).

It’s worth emphasizing that some of these routes aren’t actually scheduled to be operated by Boeing 787-9s. Rather, American is having to prioritize long haul routes based on the reality that the airline won’t have sufficient aircraft. While some of these routes were scheduled to be operated by 787-8s and 777s, presumably those planes will now be used on other routes where American hoped to use the new 787-9s.

Bottom line

American Airlines is continuing to experience Boeing 787 delivery delays, with the airline not getting its new Boeing 787-9s with the initially planned timeline. As a result, American has reduced its summer 2025 flying schedule, including reducing several long haul routes. On the plus side, at least no destinations are being cut altogether, though some people will be stuck with an extra connection.

What do you make of American’s long haul flight cuts?