American Airlines is returning to Chicago-Tokyo flying, but there is a catch: it is not really adding service so much as replacing Japan Airlines on the route. That may help AAdvantage members looking to use systemwide upgrades, but for most passengers this looks like a downgrade…and betrays a linger malaise in the AA longhaul strategy.
The flight will operate as follows:
On the surface, this sounds like good news. More longhaul flying from Chicago is welcome, especially from American, which has ceded so much ground to United at O’Hare over the years. American last operated this route until early 2020, so this is a resumption of a route that has worked before (though AA cut it two months prior to the pandemic, so it did not fail last time due to COVID-19).
A great solo travel tip spotted this week on Live and Let's Fly.
