American Airlines Drops Four Long-Haul Routes in 2026, Handing Several to Rivals

American Airlines has withdrawn its long-haul flight services from four major international destinations, including Australia, Qatar, France, and Switzerland. 

The most surprising cut was from Los Angeles to Brisbane, a carrier based in Fort Worth that was forced to cease operations in January after just two months into its operations. From now on, Qantas will be the only carrier between the two cities to operate services all year long, and Delta Air Lines is bringing in seasonal flights during the summer months in the Southern Hemisphere.

In February, American ended its Philadelphia-to-Doha service. Regional tensions in the Middle East and the safety and security issues that they raise for airlines were a factor in the decision. Qatar Airways, another oneworld carrier, has now become the only airline to fly on the line.

Services were also cut in Europe. In March, American suspended service to Paris Charles de Gaulle due to the changing demand for transatlantic flights ahead of the busy summer season, and the route was dropped. It is currently flown exclusively by Air France, and indirectly by French bee from Paris Orly Airport.

This was the last time the Dallas/Fort Worth to Zurich route was operated in August; it was a summer-only service at that point. There is no timetable for the future on this route, even 2027 in the future, and it is the only one of the four routes now served by no airline on a nonstop basis.

Even with the cuts, American is still a big long-haul carrier. It's the third busiest U.S. carrier for long-haul flying and will be expected to average some 78 long-haul departures per day next summer. It operates in Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and South America.

The new ones are part of a series of cutbacks. In 20 years, American has terminated its services from 13 European airports, including London Gatwick, Brussels, Manchester, and Shannon. Further, it has exited flight services on 11 South American routes, including Recife, Salvador, and Brasília, as well as Asian routes to Beijing Capital, Hong Kong, and Osaka Kansai.

The airline's withdrawal from the four routes, which totalled some 23,759 network miles of operation, is indicative of the ongoing emphasis on aircraft utilization and seasonal demand, rather than year-round service in lower-density markets.

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