More flight changes planned for CLT’s American Airlines lineup

Hannah Smoot
·2 min read

American Airlines is dropping another destination from its offerings out of Charlotte Douglas International Airport as the national pilot shortage continues.

The airline, the dominant carrier at the Charlotte airport, will discontinue regional service from CLT to Flint, Michigan, beginning Sept. 7.

American Airlines will still serve Flint with flights operating to other American hubs.

The newest changes come one week after American Airlines confirmed to The Charlotte Observer its plans to drop three other routes from CLT.

In that announcement, the airline said it will discontinue service from Charlotte to Alexandria, Louisiana, beginning Oct. 6. And American Airlines will temporarily suspend service from CLT to El Paso, Texas, and Sioux Falls, South Dakota, from Oct. 6 to April 3.

Also in that announcement, American Airlines said it would add one route to Charlotte offerings, with a new seasonal service from CLT to San Jose, California. That route will operate once daily from Nov. 3 to April 23.

READ MORE: Charlotte Observer expands online accessibility with more free articles

The changes to American’s flight schedule are made in accordance with customer demand, according to the airline.

And the ongoing national pilot shortage could continue to affect flight schedules for some time, American said.

American Airlines has previously said the airline has 100 regional planes grounded due to the lack of regional pilots.

All three of American Airlines wholly-owned regional airlines announced major pay bumps for their pilots this month in an effort to retain and attract new talent.

Travelers at the Charlotte airport over the summer should expect to see longer lines and crowded parking lots as travel demand picks up, airport officials have said.

Charlotte’s airport saw a dramatic drop in passengers in early 2020 as the coronavirus hit North Carolina. But officials have predicted that passenger travel will make a full recovery by next year.

The airport was one of the busiest in the world last year, ranked the fifth busiest airport worldwide for arrivals and departures, according to Airports Council International 2021 preliminary rankings.