American – “Give Us Delta’s SEA Tokyo Slots for LAX”

“We’ve asked the DOT to withdraw Delta’s Seattle-Haneda rights because of their underuse. They’ve agreed, now we’re trying to convince the DOT that our service from LAX would be the best use of those rights.”

This morning American filed an application with the DOT to operate daily, year-round flights from LAX to Haneda (HND). The proposed flights would use Delta’s existing Seattle slots. American previously asked the DOT to re-examine the rights in October due to “Delta’s deserting of Seattle from October – March”. The DOT then agreed to review the rights in a December 15th decision.

Besides filing a formal application, AA has set up a dedicated webpage – “Let American Fly Haneda” to plead their case and throw Delta some shade:

This winter 2015, Delta Air Lines will only operate flights between Seattle-Tacoma International and Haneda Airport 17 times – that’s less than 10 percent of the time and just enough for Delta to maintain rights to the slot. American would provide customers daily, year-round nonstop service between our hub at LAX and Haneda on Boeing 777-200 aircraft, ensuring 100% utilization of the valuable slots at Haneda.

Today, there are only four daily flights to Haneda from the United States operated by U.S. airlines and American is the only U.S. global network carrier that can’t operate its own aircraft at Haneda. We would make the most of an underutilized slot and provide customers with a new travel option that they don’t have today. Tell the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) why it should #LetAAFlyHaneda and voice your opinion on social media using the hashtag #LetAAFlyHaneda.