It looks highly unlikely that American Airlines will win a bid for service to China from the US, after no agreements could be met between their pilot's union and management. This all but dooms the airline's chances.
American asked the Department of Transportation to modify its proposal to fly non-stop from their Dallas/Fort Worth hub. The airline asked to fly from DFW to Chicago and then on to Beijing, where flight crews would change in Chicago. And the airline said it would begin non-stop services from DFW as soon as it was able.
American Airline's CEO Gerard Arprey said, "Even with the modification, it bears repeating that American's route request will offer the maximum public benefits for the valuable and limited opportunity available in the U.S.-China market and will provide much-needed competitive balance."
It looks as front runner has become United Airlines. I personally believed that if American got permission from their pilots that they would have received the rights to fly to China non-stop, but with this recent turn of events, I have to favor United. Linking capital cities is such a huge iconic symbol. Not only that, United already flies non-stop from Chicago to Beijing.
Comment Preview