The decision to de-hub San Juan was driven by several factors:
Financial Constraints: The airline needed to cut costs and streamline operations to survive its financial troubles. Competition: Carriers like JetBlue and Spirit Airlines were expanding aggressively in the Caribbean, offering lower fares that undercut American’s pricing strategy. Shift in Focus: American Airlines redirected resources to other hubs that promised higher profitability, such as Miami (MIA), which also served as a Caribbean gateway.
American Airlines
IATA/ICAO Code AA/AAL
Year Founded 1926
CEO Robert Isom
Country United States
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By 2014, the effects of the de-hubbing process were clear. Annual departures from San Juan had fallen to just over 4,000, and the number of seats offered had dropped to approximately 700,000. This represented an 84% decline in flight movements and an 84.4% reduction in available seats compared to 2007.
2015: A glimmer of hope?
However, there seemed to be a slight suggestion of recovery in 2015. Despite the substantial reduction in operations, American Airlines did not completely abandon San Juan. After bottoming out in 2014, American seemingly began to rebuild its capacity at SJU.
Photo: Vytautas Kielaitis | Shutterstock
Here’s a timeline of American Airlines’ decline (and rise) in San Juan, as outlined in an Aviation Week article dated 2017:
2007: 35,000 annual departures, offering 4.5 million seats. 2014: Just over 4,000 annual departures, with 700,000 seats. 2015: This year marked the first significant increase since the de-hubbing process began. American Airlines boosted its available seats, growing year-on-year capacity by 7.7%. 2016: Seat capacity surpassed one million for the first time since 2012, with a 40.2% increase on 2015.
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This growth indicated that while San Juan was no longer the hub it once was, it remained a valuable part of American Airlines’ network. The airline, however, shifted its focus to operating point-to-point routes rather than using San Juan as a connecting hub.
2017: the end of a legacy route
While the developments of 2015 and 2016 signaled the potential comeback of San Juan as a hub, American Airlines made a move in April 2017 that solidified its de-hubbing strategy: dropping its key services between New York John F. Kennedy and San Juan.
In a USA Today report, spokesperson LeKesha Boewn was quoted as saying:
“We have made the difficult decision to cancel our service. We continually evaluate our network, looking at supply and demand for each route we serve. We want to ensure our fleet and crews are serving routes that are profitable, better positioning us for long-term success against global competition.”
This decision was indeed a difficult one for the airline, as it had been operating the service since March 1971, inheriting it from Trans Caribbean Airlines when American Airlines acquired the former. More than 46 years after it began serving the route, the airline ceased its twice-daily round-trip JFK-SJU operations on August 22, 2017.
However, this did not mean American Airlines completely stopped flying to San Juan. After axing its JFK-SJU flights, it continued operating 21 daily flights between SJU and five of its other hubs, namely, Charlotte, Chicago O’Hare, Dallas/Fort Worth, Miami, and Philadelphia.
Why did the San Juan hub ultimately fail?
American Airlines’ San Juan hub failed to thrive due to a combination of external pressures and internal restructuring. Factors such as the rise of low-cost carriers, economic challenges in Puerto Rico, and a shift in the airline’s strategic priorities all contributed to the decline. Additionally, Miami International Airport offered a more efficient hub for Caribbean connections, leading American to concentrate resources there.
While the days of San Juan as a bustling hub are over, American Airlines continues to maintain a presence on the island. The airline now operates a scaled-back schedule, focusing on high-demand leisure routes and maintaining ties with the local market. The airline’s recovery efforts suggest that while it may never return to its former glory, San Juan remains an important destination for American Airlines.
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Publish date : 2024-11-25 04:04:00
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