American Airlines Launches 3 Daily Routes Between NY and Cali, Bogotá, Medellín, Colombia

On May 6, American Airlines (NASDAQ: AAL) will launch three new daily routes from New York (JFK) to the Colombian cities of Cali (CLO), Bogota (BOG) and Medellin (MDE), and will also begin flying three times per week to Santiago, Chile (SCL) from JFK on a Boeing 777-200, until flights begin operating daily in November. The US carrier also announced new Saturday service from JFK to St. Lucia (UVF) and Turks and Caicos (PLS) beginning on June 5, complementing JetBlue’s existing service.

These routes are part of a larger effort by American Airlines and JetBlue (NASDAQ: JBLU) to coordinate schedules and codeshares, a practice that provides passenger access to a broader network by allowing travelers to book a single itinerary directly with their preferred airline for flights operated by a partner airline. The first routes available for purchase will include domestic point-to-point markets, some operated by only one carrier and others operated by both airlines.

The Colombia-NY routes will be serviced by Boeing 777-200 widebody aircraft.

“This is the first step to delivering the best customer proposition with the biggest network in New York and Boston,” said Vasu Raja, American’s Chief Revenue Officer. “In the months ahead, we’ll continue to create a seamless experience that’s easy for our customers, supports our communities and leads to more growth for our team.”

American and NY based JetBlue Airlines announced their Northeast Alliance in July, followed by the airlines’ intent to introduce key elements of the alliance after review by the Department of Transportation in January.

“Our alliance with American opens the door for JetBlue to successfully enter into new markets, introducing more choices and our award-winning service and low fares to more customers,” said Scott Laurence, head of revenue and planning, JetBlue. “The alliance is also essential to getting our planes back in the air profitably and crewmembers working again.”