American Airlines is poised to remain the leading airline between the United States and Cuba with today’s announcement that the U.S. Department of Transportation has tentatively awarded American the authority to operate five daily flights to José Martí International Airport (HAV) in Havana – four from Miami International Airport (MIA) and one from Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT).
American employees hold up the Cuban flag.

“American has a rich history in the Cuban market and we are excited to continue to be the leader in providing air service between the United States and Cuba,” said Andrew Nocella, American’s chief marketing officer. “We thank Secretary Foxx and the Department of Transportation for the opportunity to serve Havana and for their leadership in restoring scheduled service between the U.S. and Cuba after more than 50 years.”

American’s Havana flights will go on sale next month after DOT issues its final decision, with service expected to begin in November. The MIA-HAV flights will be operated with Boeing 737-800 aircraft and the CLT-HAV flight will be operated with an Airbus A319 aircraft. With the addition of Havana, American will operate a total of 13 daily flights to six destinations in Cuba.

American will inaugurate scheduled service to five other Cuban cities in September, with the first flights departing Miami for Cienfuegos and Holguin on Sept. 7. Scheduled service from Miami to Camaguey and Santa Clara will begin on Sept. 9, and from Miami to Varadero on Sept. 11.

In April, American proudly celebrated 25 years of charter service to Cuba – invaluable and unmatched experience that positioned the airline to continue as the leading U.S. carrier to Cuba. In addition to American’s vast experience and familiarity with ground operations in Cuba, no airline has made a greater commitment to Miami-Dade County – the heart and soul of the Cuban-American community and home to nearly 50 percent of the Cuban-American population in the U.S. American remains the undisputed leader among all airlines serving the people and businesses of Miami-Dade.

American will offer customers unrivaled connectivity through its MIA and CLT hubs. From its Latin America gateway hub at MIA, American operates more than 350 daily flights to more than 130 destinations in 44 countries and territories. From CLT, American operates more than 650 daily flights to 145 destinations in 23 countries.