The fallout from the two Boeing 737 Max crashes continues to affect airlines worldwide. American Airlines announced it will extend cancellations tied to the Max grounding through Aug. 19 to accommodate the ongoing situation.
Since the fleet was grounded in March after the second fatal accident involving this model, American has been canceling about 90 flights per day. With the newly extended schedule, the airline expects to cancel roughly 115 flights daily through mid-August. Those cancellations amount to about 1.5% of the carrier’s total flights.
In a company statement, American said it is working closely with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Boeing and is “highly confident that the Max will be recertified prior to this time.” Nevertheless, the airline emphasized that extending cancellations now allows it to plan more reliably for the busy summer travel season and to give customers and employees greater certainty about travel plans.
“Once the Max is recertified, we anticipate bringing our Max aircraft back online as spares to supplement our operation as needed during the summer,” the airline added, noting that this approach should help maintain schedule stability as the fleet returns to service.
American also said its reservation team is proactively contacting affected passengers. Travelers booked on canceled flights may rebook their travel or request a refund, and the airline is offering direct assistance to help customers adjust plans.
Globally, about 400 Boeing 737 Max jets have been delivered to airlines, and the grounding has continued to ripple through schedules and operations as regulators, manufacturers and carriers work toward a safe return to service.