American Airlines Group said on Friday it would suspend its Philadelphia-Madrid route for a few weeks in May and early June due to a delay in deliveries of Boeing Co’s 787 Dreamliners. Boeing delivered a 787 to American earlier this month and the airline is slated to get three more this year. The next Dreamliner lined up for delivery has a contractual date stretching back to April 2021 and a revised date of March 2022.
“We continue to work with our customers, including American Airlines, on delivery timing and deeply regret the impact on their operations. We remain focused on driving stability in our production system, including closely partnering with our suppliers to address industry challenges to meet our customer commitments,” Boeing said in an emailed statement. Boeing resumed deliveries of its 787 Dreamliner jets last week, with delivery to German airline Lufthansa being its first since deliveries were halted in late February due to a data issue with a component.
American Airlines said it was making schedule adjustments to re-accommodate passengers on affected flights. “We remain committed to our customers and team members and mitigating the impact of the 787 delivery delays while continuing to offer a robust international network this summer,” American Airlines said in a statement. The news was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.