I’m definitely not the only aviation fan who follows the route changes airlines (quietly) submit every weekend.
Over the weekend, Delta Air Lines added new nonstop flights from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) to Philadelphia International Airport (PHL). Now, perhaps in response to this, American Airlines is adding more flights to one of Delta’s main hubs. The airline has also added four new routes to the mid-Atlantic and will resume suspended transatlantic routes.
American Airlines will upgrade its Philadelphia-Salt Lake City route from seasonal service to (mostly) year-round service, which first appeared on the Cirium schedule and was later confirmed by an airline spokesperson.
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The route is very similar to Delta’s route last week, hitting the competitor’s main hub – in this case Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC) – and originating from PHL, American Airlines’ large gateway in the Northeast.
While it’s possible that demand patterns have evolved enough to warrant a nearly 80% increase in flights, Fort Worth’s network planners may also be trying to counter Delta’s latest transmission in Philadelphia, American’s stronghold hub. After all, just look at the timing of announcements over the past two weeks.
Delta Air Lines’ new nonstop service to the Philippines from Southeast Asia, one of its main West Coast hubs, is an intrusion into American Airlines’ turf and could take away some American Airlines passengers. Now, American Airlines may react in the same way.
The connecting time for American Airlines flights at PHL is fixed, as is the connecting time for Delta Air Lines flights at SEA. Turf wars are common in the airline industry and it will be interesting to see how both airlines fare on these routes.
Flying with Transcon isn’t cheap – it’s not like American Airlines (or Delta) adding service to certain local cities via regional jets. These flights of 5 hours or longer require a full aircraft commitment of at least 12 hours per day. American Airlines, for its part, even parks its aircraft at SLC overnight, effectively dedicating an entire aircraft to that route.
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In addition to the upgraded service, American will add four new routes: two to Greenbrier Valley Airport (LWB) in Lewisburg, West Virginia, and two to Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport (SHD) in Weyers Cave, Virginia. SHD is located near Shenandoah National Park and the nearby cities of Harrisonburg and Staunton, Virginia.
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Both LWB and SHD will be served by American Eagle regional affiliate SkyWest Airlines from Charlotte and Chicago.
Services will commence to SHD on February 3, 2026 and to LWB a week later.
In addition, American Airlines will officially resume daily summer flights to Tel Aviv Ben Gurion Airport (TLV) on March 28, 2026. The airline will resume nonstop flights from New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), but it’s unclear whether it will change service from Miami or Dallas-Fort Worth.
Interestingly, Tel Aviv remains a resilient and thriving market for (at least) one of the three major competitors. Earlier this month, United announced it would offer up to three daily flights from Newark to Tel Aviv, joining soon-to-be-resumed service from Chicago and Washington, D.C.
Delta also offers flights to Tel Aviv from New York but has not announced when it will resume flights to Tel Aviv from Atlanta and Boston.
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