American Airlines has extended flight cancellations stemming from the grounding of the Boeing 737 Max aircraft through September 3, although the airline said that it remains confident the aircraft will be recertified “soon.” In April, American had announced flight cancellations through August 19.
The latest cancellations amount to approximately 115 flights per day, American said, also noting that its reservations and sales teams will continue to work closely with customers who are impacted by the cancellations. Customers should note that not all flights that had previously been scheduled on a 737 Max will be canceled as the airline works to substitute other aircraft types, while flights that had not been scheduled on the grounded aircraft may be scheduled as the airline shifts the aircraft that had been scheduled to fly to cover another route.
If a flight is cancelled and a customer chooses not to be rebooked, they can request a full refund via aa.com/refunds.
“American Airlines remains confident that impending software updates to the Boeing 737 MAX, along with the new training elements Boeing is developing in coordination with our union partners, will lead to recertification of the aircraft soon,” the airline said in a statement announcing the new cancellations. “We have been in continuous contact with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of Transportation (DOT), National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and other regulatory authorities, and we are pleased with the progress to date.”
The 737 Max had been grounded in a number of countries and regions, including Mexico, the European Union and the United States following the tragic crash of an Ethiopian Airlines 737 Max flight, just months after a 737 Max operated by Indonesia’s Lion Air crashed under similar circumstances.
A number of other airlines have been forced to reshuffle operations to account for the grounded aircraft, including Southwest Airlines, Norwegian and others.
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