Summary
- American Airlines is canceling its service between Los Angeles and San Jose, which could have an impact on their operational network.
- Alaska Airlines is predicted to learn from this cancellation as it could capture the demand left behind by American and offer easy connectivity to long-haul flights.
- Passengers within the greater San Jose area may face higher fares and fewer options, but this cancellation opens up opportunities for one more carrier to fill the gap.
On 4 December 2023, US-based legacy carrier American Airlines officially canceled its service from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to San Jose Mineta International Airport (SJC). The service, which was sold under the name of American’s regional subsidiary, is about to stop operations in April 2024.
While this cancelation is not set to remove the American legacy carrier from the route map at San Jose’s principal airport, the route will definitely have major effects on the airline’s operational network as an entire. In this text, we are going to take a deeper have a look at this service cancelation, and examine how it’ll affect American within the California Bay Area.
Specifics of the service cancelation
On the route between LAX and SJC, the legacy airline previously flew two every day frequencies for roughly 60 flights per thirty days with roughly 4,000 seats being sold in each direction. Nevertheless, starting on 3 April 2024, these flights will stop operations, cutting off San Jose from the airline’s Los Angeles base.
Photo: Andrew Mauro | Shutterstock
One other major winner from this service cancelation is US legacy carrier United Airlines, which has yet to be mentioned on this story. For passengers from the Southern Bay Area, there are two options for flying to long-haul destinations in Europe or Asia.
First, passengers could decide to fly out of United’s San Francisco hub, which sits decently far-off from most communities within the Southern Bay Area. Moreover, passengers could decide to fly on a connecting service like American’s to LAX before crossing the ocean. With no American connection to LA in San Jose, crossing the Pacific just becomes far easier on United for residents of the Southern Bay region.
Photo: Markus Mainka | Shutterstock
But one clear loser will needless to say be passengers from the greater San Jose area. Fewer services and weaker competition will only result in higher fares for those traveling to and from the airport. But with American backing out of this route, there might be room for one more carrier to capture the demand that has been left behind.