American’s Chicago Growth Plan Includes 100 New Daily Flights

American Airlines has announced plans to add 100 new daily flights from its Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD) hub starting in early 2026. The expansion will bring service to more than 75 destinations, marking the airline’s largest spring schedule ever at ORD.

The move significantly strengthens Chicago’s role in American’s network and underscores the airline’s confidence in continued demand growth for both leisure and business travel.

Focus on leisure and long-haul routes

A large portion of the new flights targets high-demand leisure markets, particularly popular spring break destinations. American plans to double frequencies to cities such as Las Vegas, Panama City Beach, Sarasota-Bradenton, Orlando, Fort Myers, and Pensacola in Florida.

Additional capacity will also be added to key domestic routes, including San Francisco, San Diego, Savannah, Asheville, Boston, Cincinnati, and Dallas-Fort Worth.

On the international side, American will extend its seasonal service to Dublin by one additional month and to Paris by three months, giving travelers more transatlantic options during shoulder seasons.

Intensifying competition in Chicago

By scaling up its ORD operation, American is directly taking on United Airlines, which operates one of its largest hubs at Chicago O’Hare. The move raises the stakes at one of the most competitive airports globally and may force rival airlines to respond with additional capacity or pricing adjustments.

The network expansion also comes shortly after American updated its AAdvantage loyalty program, removing mileage and Loyalty Points earning for passengers flying on basic economy tickets. This aligns American more closely with Delta, which also limits earnings on its lowest fares.

United, however, continues to offer some mileage credit on basic economy tickets, which could give it an edge with price-sensitive travelers who still value loyalty accrual when choosing between carriers.

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