American Airlines adds international routes on XLR planes

American Airlines announced Thursday it will add seven international routes to its 2027 schedule, with many of those on its Airbus A321XLR planes.

Here are the additions:

• Charlotte, North Carolina, to Barcelona, Spain, starting May 27, on a Boeing 777-200ER.
• Chicago O’Hare International Airport to Tokyo’s Narita International Airport, starting March 19, on a Boeing 787-9.
• New York John F. Kennedy International Airport to Amsterdam, starting March 28, on an Airbus A321XLR.
• New York JFK to Nice, France, starting May 6, on an Airbus A321XLR.
• Philadelphia to Porto, Portugal, starting March 28, on an Airbus A321XLR.
• Philadelphia to Reykjavik, Iceland, starting May 27, on an Airbus A321neo.
• Philadelphia to Vienna, starting May 6, on an Airbus A321XLR.

The carrier is also adding a fourth daily flight between JFK and London Heathrow Airport, on a Boeing 787-9, starting March 28.

The Airbus XLR, which stands for extra long range, has the ability to go up to 4,700 nautical miles. The single-aisle planes are smaller than others in the airline’s fleet, like a Boeing 777 or Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which makes them cheaper to operate.

The airline rolled out a new interior and configuration with its inaugural XLR flight last year. It’s allocated more space to premium seats — which take up a fifth of the plane — than it has on its other aircraft.

American’s plan is to use the XLRs to focus on routes to smaller European cities from its Philadelphia hub or from New York City.

“It really opens up the menu for all these destinations that are just too small for a widebody,” American’s senior vice president of network and schedule planning, Brian Znotins, told CNBC last year.

The airline said its Vienna route will extend through early January 2028 to draw tourists who are aiming to visit European Christmas markets. That follows a growing trend, as airlines have been adding more capacity in the shoulder seasons and even in the off-peak winter period as travelers opt to fly in the fall and other cooler, cheaper times of the year.

American’s announcement comes the same week that United Airlines unveiled its 2027 destinations. United is adding routes to less traditionally popular tourist destinations for U.S. travelers, spanning Ljubljana, Slovenia, to Okinawa, Japan.

United offers more international service than other U.S. airlines.

American has been trying to close a profit gap with rivals United and Delta Air Lines and said earlier this year that its flying is split about 80% domestic versus 20% international.

International flights often carry a high premium compared with domestic routes — and the planes serving them generally have more luxurious seats on board, which can be more profitable for airlines.