by Donald Wood
Last updated: 10:21 AM ET, Fri April 3, 2020
American Airlines announced Thursday it would be forced to cut capacity again this summer as record-low customer demand caused by the coronavirus outbreak continues to devastate the aviation industry.
The airline revealed it would suspend more than 60 percent of international capacity for the peak summer travel season when compared to the same period last year and delay the launch of new routes until 2021.
The new flights impacted include service between Philadelphia and Casablanca, Chicago and Krakow, and Seattle and Bangalore. In total, 25 summer seasonal flights will be suspended until summer 2021.
The reduced summer schedule will be reflected on American's official website on April 5.
In addition, the carrier announced several routes scheduled to debut in October would now debut winter 2021, while several flights originally slated to resume in early October would return at the end of the month.
Airlines around the world have been impacted by the viral outbreak, as Southwest Airlines announced a new flight schedule earlier this week that would reduce flight activity by more than 40 percent, limiting the low-cost carrier to approximately 2,000 flights per day.
The aviation industry is also on high alert after United States President Donald Trump said he is reluctant to shut down airlines, but did acknowledge that asking carriers to cut back on flights between cities hardest hit by the coronavirus is an option.
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