While this would be cool, I don’t see it happening…
In this post:
Report of American adding Palma de Mallorca route
The Majorca Daily Bulletin is reporting that American Airlines plans to launch a route between Miami (MIA) and Palma de Mallorca (PMI). The publication claims that American will launch the route once weekly. In addition to the demand between Miami and Mallorca, this would also allow easy(ish) connections between Mallorca and other destinations, like Aruba, Cuba, and Mexico.
United Airlines launched a seasonal Newark (EWR) to Palma de Mallorca (PMI) route in 2022, and increased frequencies in the market in 2023. This is currently the only seasonal link between the United States and Mallorca, which is otherwise a very popular tourist destination for Europeans (particularly Germans — I speak from experience here!).
The Majorca Daily Bulletin suggests that the United service to Palma de Mallorca has become United’s most profitable Spanish route, and “perhaps also in Europe.” Lol, yeah, while I’m sure the route does well seasonally, I don’t buy that.
The route could make sense, but I’m skeptical
I’m covering this “report” because several people have brought this claim to my attention. I don’t know what the Spanish’s publication source is, but I’m going to put this claim in the “unlikely” category:
- American has already announced most of its summer 2024 transatlantic expansion, so it seems odd that this would still be added, and I also can’t imagine that the airline is already planning its 2025 network in this way
- As a concept, American doesn’t operate once weekly transatlantic flights, so the claim that this would be once weekly makes this less believable
- American isn’t a very creative or adventurous airline when it comes to long haul expansion, and the airline seems to have tunnel vision, focusing almost exclusively on one or two hubs; Miami has seen almost no attention from the airline when it comes to transatlantic additions
- The claim that United’s Newark to Palma route is “perhaps” United’s most profitable in Europe further detracts from the reliability of this rumor, because what exactly is that based on?
Now, while I don’t think this route will happen, I do think it would be profitable, on a seasonal basis:
- There’s a huge amount of traffic between Miami and Spain, and we have multiple daily flights to Madrid
- Anecdotally, I know several people in Miami who go to Palma every summer, so I have to imagine the demand would be there
- The issue, ultimately, is that in summer airlines have absolutely no issues filling planes for transatlantic services; the question isn’t if a route is profitable, but rather the question is whether it’s the most profitable and best utilization of an aircraft
So yeah, I’d love to see the route, but I don’t see it happening, especially with American’s route planning team. I’d be happy to be proven wrong, though.
Bottom line
Media in Mallorca is reporting that American plans to launch a flight between Miami and Palma de Mallorca. As cool as that would be for the Miami market, I just don’t see this becoming a reality, at least anytime in the near future.
I’m sure American would have no problems serving this route seasonally in a profitable manner, but there are lots of transatlantic markets where that’s the case, and Miami doesn’t seem to be a transatlantic priority for American.
What do you make of the prospects of American adding a Miami to Palma de Mallorca route?
Wouldn't it be simpler to connect at Madrid? LOL
Transferring between T4S in Madrid (arrival point for AA/IB USA flights) and T4, is okay but it's one helluva trek if your connecting flight goes from T1 or T2!
Very true! Last March we had to transfer from T4 to T1, and according to the official schedule, it takes 15 minutes, but seemed longer than this.
What is the likelihood AA files with the DOT for a MIA-Haneda nonstop, given the upcoming slots that will become available from DL + HA? City of Miami has been courting JAL for +5 years, but now AA has the opportunity.
I think it would be a great route, mostly for connecting traffic from Latin America. Brazil and Peru in particular with lots of historical links
As someone who lives in Mallorca and actually knows some of the folk that work at MDB, I wouldn't trust a word they say.
When airlines have once-weekly service to a destination, how does that work for the crew? Do they spend the week at the location?
It's common with charter carriers from Europe. Sometimes position to another station to operate a flight back, sometimes operate back to another station (not applicable here of course - but a TUI Gatwick crew to Cancun may operate back to Glasgow for example and then position home) or if you're really lucky you'd just get a weeks layover.
Certainly on UK airlines it's more likely in winter you'd get a longer layover as crew are...
It's common with charter carriers from Europe. Sometimes position to another station to operate a flight back, sometimes operate back to another station (not applicable here of course - but a TUI Gatwick crew to Cancun may operate back to Glasgow for example and then position home) or if you're really lucky you'd just get a weeks layover.
Certainly on UK airlines it's more likely in winter you'd get a longer layover as crew are less in demand, in summer there is probably a routing to work you home sooner and keep you productive
The plane can go from base to outstation, and come back again pretty much straight away (or as soon as crew are rested). Passengers wanting a week's trip would use the return leg of the next rotation.
They generally would pax “passenger” back home usually to their nearest city of operation no doubt Madrid - not sure 100%
"Most profitable route in Europe" LOL.
Why do people from Miami go to Palma though? A long way to go just for some nice beaches. I could understand Ibiza for the world famous nightlife, and Barcelona because it's such an international city, but Mallorca?
English language “news”/blogs in Spain are notoriously useless- packed with rumor and speculation, almost always lacking fact and basis.
Could be a semi-charter to ferry Americans to Mediterranean cruise ships?
But very few cruise ships depart from an island. Logistically it's much easier to stock and board a big cruise ship from the mainland.
I am by no means a cruise expert but I believe these Mediterranean ships don’t actually “start” anywhere, you can board at pretty much any port and get off, too. So at any one time there are pax on a week-long cruise or a four day cruise, all at the same time. And catering is done at whatever port is best suitable along the route.
AA crews were on several MIA-MAD-MIA flights operated by Airbus and an A321XLR for testing and familiarity recently. Doubtful AA would launch a once a week route to PMI. Makes no sense. If UA's EWR-PMI route is its most profitable TATL one, then UA has problems.
This definitely screams to be an A321XLR route- but even so it falls just outside of the published range of the XLR from Miami. PMI certainly has a case for more US services but if AA was to do it, I think it would be from PHL, which would be possible with the A321XLR.
agree... there is little reason to operate a once weekly flight. If AA operated daily from another US hub, then a once daily might make some sense but not in the summer when there are no shortage of daily flight opportunities
Jeff, The spanish folks do NOT WANT TO GO TO PHL!
THEY WANT MIA NONSTOP!
AA WAKE UP!