New York John F Kennedy International Airport

American Eagle’s exit from San Juan leaves gap in small intra-Caribbean markets

American Eagle appears closer to ending a 41-year era with the planned phase-out of its base in San Juan as part of a network overhaul in the Chapter 11 restructuring of its parent American Airlines. Closing San Juan was becoming more apparent as the fleet supporting its operations in the Caribbean – the ATR 72 – is being phased out at the end of next year. But other carriers could capitalise on American’s exit either through backfilling the flights or forging partnerships to feed the islands.

The carrier has sent out a announcement to employees in San Juan explaining the base would be closing during a phase-out period ending in March 2013, CAPA has learned.

The cuts are only being applied to American Eagle’s operations in San Juan, not American’s mainline operations.

North Atlantic route analysis: New York, and especially London, continue to rule

Despite the continued growth of other gateways on both sides of the Atlantic, New York and London continue to be the two endpoints most frequently appearing on the list of top North Atlantic routes. In an ongoing review of the world’s top routes by region as taken from CAPA's new Routes Rankings tool, we next look at the most established international sector - the North Atlantic.

Where are the world's leading LCC airports?

LCCs now account for about a fifth of all flights globally, making it increasingly vital for airports and air traffic management providers to understand the sector and its drivers. Worldwide, of the top 20 airports for LCC aircraft movements, 12 are in the US, four are in Europe and the remainder are in the Asia Pacific region. (By seats, ten are in the US, and five each in Europe and Asia Pacific). As ever, though, the global LCC market is in flux. Airlines expand or contract their operations at airports in relation to their own growth trajectories and the changes in season.

JetBlue touts Boston, Caribbean to investors

JetBlue CFO Ed Barnes sees no drop off in demand resulting from this summer’s economic woes, but is "monitoring the economic changes closely". The last sign of weakness was in June, Mr Barnes told this week's Dahlman Rose Transportation Conference, adding July and August were in positive territory although not as positive as the airline experienced in the first quarter.

American Airlines’ “cornerstone” worldview

American Airlines has had quite a week. First they announced the largest aircraft order and shifted away from their Boeing-only stance, essentially forcing Boeing’s hand on its next project — a re-engined B737. It posted another quarterly loss and said that the status of American Eagle was about to change, either through spin-off or sale.