American Airlines will move to a more balanced daily schedule at Dallas-Fort Worth Airport, a move AA said will improve connection times and airspace efficiency while increasing operational resilience at its largest hub.
American currently schedules its DFW operation in nine daily flight banks. (Banks are flight clusters timed to coordinate arrivals and departures in a way that optimizes connecting itineraries.) Beginning in April, American will evolve its schedule to have 13 banks. The move, the airline said, will provide more certainty for the approximately 100,000 people who fly American from DFW on busy days, in part by offering a broader array of potential connections, including more that don’t require a fast, stress-inducing journey to the next gate.
“American’s new structure at DFW reduces the concentration of very short connection times, creating more balance that offers customers greater confidence when planning their journey,” the airline said.
The airline explained other benefits, saying the extra banks will result in fewer early morning flights and more flights during the times of the morning that travelers prefer. Fewer early morning departures to DFW will be good news for customers making morning connections, American added.
Having 13 banks also will alleviate the surges of airspace congestion around DFW that are an issue with the airport’s denser nine-bank schedule.
Similarly, it will spread customer volume at airport touchpoints, including TSA security, retailers, parking garages, lounges and American Airlines counters.
American also noted that thunderstorms sometimes result in DFW ground halts. By operating a more evenly spaced daily schedule, the airline expects to recover quicker when ground halts occur.
American’s revised DFW schedule will open for flight booking on Dec. 27.