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American Airlines will regain three Chicago O’Hare gates in October, more than offsetting last year’s losses after United’s attempt to leverage capacity and gate rules to squeeze it out of Chicago fell short.
American Airlines is expected to announce Chicago–Tokyo flights today after details leaked ahead of an O’Hare employee event. The route would mark a major step in American’s renewed Chicago push, giving the airline fresh long-haul Asia service, more Japan Airlines joint-venture connectivity, and another way to fight back as United tries to dominate O’Hare.
American Airlines is poised to win back three gates at Chicago O’Hare, undercutting United’s effort to use aggressive growth and gate reallocations to widen its advantage at the airport. If the preliminary determination holds and the FAA’s flight caps stay in place, Scott Kirby’s strategy to squeeze American further out of Chicago will have failed.
A top United executive took a personal shot at American Airlines CEO Robert Isom during FAA meetings over Chicago O’Hare, saying “he’s no Bob Crandall” while arguing American’s weak position there was the result of its own decisions.
The FAA has capped Chicago O’Hare at 2025 schedule levels for the summer, a move that sharply cuts back United’s much larger growth plan while largely preserving American’s rebuilt position. That makes this more than a routine delay-fighting order: it is a major intervention in the Chicago airline battle, one that blocks United from using aggressive over-scheduling to strengthen its hold on gates and market share.
For months, United CEO Scott Kirby has been publicly portraying American Airlines as a huge money loser in Chicago, framing O’Hare as a battleground his airline could dominate. Now American’s CFO is finally answering back — and his argument is that Kirby is using the wrong profit measure, because by the metrics that actually drive decisions, Chicago O’Hare is not a drag on the airline at all.
United and American Airlines have scheduled so many flights into Chicago O’Hare that the FAA is now stepping in, forcing both carriers to slash flights this summer to prevent massive delays and chaos at one of America’s busiest airports.
United Airlines is flooding Chicago O’Hare with up to 750 flights per day this summer—its biggest schedule ever—but leaked internal slides reveal revenue per seat mile there is already falling 2.7 times faster than elsewhere. The airline appears willing to depress short-term profits, betting that American Airlines can’t afford to match this costly fare war.
Internal slides leaked from United Airlines reveal its aggressive strategy to dominate Chicago O’Hare, as their leadership openly mocks American’s hub there as “temporary” underscoring how American’s strategic missteps have cost hundreds of millions in losses.
American Airlines is transforming O’Hare’s worst airline-operated lounge—a cramped, outdated space near the L gates—into a stunning, 10,000-square-foot Admirals Club. This upgrade isn’t just about aesthetics; it’s a bold statement in American’s renewed commitment to Chicago and a direct response to United Airlines’ aggressive dominance at the airport.
Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.
Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »
