American Airlines’ route connecting New York and Doha will be suspended at the end of the northern summer season, with service to Qatar instead switching to Philadelphia.
The Dallas-Fort Worth-based carrier has closed reservations for the 6,690 mi. (5,814 nm) daily service from New York to Qatar, which launched last summer as part of efforts to further deepen ties with fellow Oneworld alliance member Qatar Airways.
Flights between New York John F. Kennedy (JFK) and Doha’s Hamad International Airport (DOH) are unavailable for booking beyond Oct. 28. American had previously filed plans to continue operating the nonstop route daily during the northern winter 2023-24 season and during summer 2024. The closure of reservations was first published by airline schedules portal AeroRoutes.
However, from Oct. 29, service to DOH will operate from Philadelphia International Airport (PHL). A statement from American says the move is “part of a continuous evaluation” of its network.
“As part of American’s partnership with Qatar Airways, customers can connect in Doha to destinations across the Middle East, Africa, and Asia,” the statement adds. “We’re proactively reaching out to customers affected by the change to offer alternate travel arrangements.”
American opened service to Doha in June 2022 using 304-seat Boeing 777-300ERs, complementing Qatar Airways’ double-daily operation between the two cities. At the time of the launch, some questioned the logic of the route, with suggestions that DOH would be better served from either Charlotte, North Carolina, or Phoenix Sky Harbor—the only American hubs not to receive Qatar Airways flights.
Despite this, American stressed the potential to drive traffic through Doha to points in codeshare partner Qatar Airways’ network not served by American. Additionally, it expected to benefit from domestic feed into JFK provided by JetBlue through the NEA.
However, American and JetBlue are now working to dismantle the NEA in accordance with a federal ruling in May. The airlines said on July 19 that they were “actively working” to submit a slot wind-down plan facilitating the return of American’s slots at JFK and New York’s LaGuardia—currently under lease to JetBlue—and to end the sharing of other airport infrastructure.
Although American plans to appeal U.S. District Judge Leo Sorokin’s decision that the NEA violates the Sherman Antitrust Act, JetBlue has confirmed that it will not contest the decision, preferring to focus on a U.S. Justice Department-initiated lawsuit that seeks to prevent its takeover of Spirit Airlines.
American says the shift of service from New York to Philadelphia “is not related to the end of the NEA.” Qatar Airways currently serves DOH-PHL daily using 777-300ERs.
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