American Airlines adds DFW flights to Mexico and the Caribbean in an attempt to boost summer travel

American Airlines is adding three new destinations from DFW International Airport in Latin America and the Caribbean in an attempt to attract travelers back for family vacations and trips.

American is adding routes in June from DFW to St. Lucia and St. Martin in the Caribbean and Mérida, in the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico, areas of the tourism world that have somewhat resisted the slowdown in travel as people looking for more outdoor destinations and international short-haul flights.

DFW flights are part of a larger list of new routes announced on Monday that significantly increases flights from the American Latin America and Caribbean hub in Miami, including an entirely new South American destination in Paramaribo, Suriname.

“Latin America and the Caribbean has not shrunk as much as other destinations throughout the crisis,” said Brian Znotins, vice president of network planning at American. “And this is our natural strength – our presence in Latin America.”

American Airlines and other operators are struggling to bring customers back from the long and deep pandemic COVID-19, which has severely affected domestic travel and obliterated international traffic. In response, American, United, Delta and even Southwest relied more heavily on Mexico and the Caribbean, along with warm climate destinations along the United States’ Gulf Coast.

Latin America has the added advantage of being popular with first and second generation immigrants in the United States who wish to return to their countries of origin to visit family and friends.

“We are really adding frequencies to all destinations in this region,” said Znotins.

All three new DFW routes will be offered on a seasonal basis starting in June and will operate only on Saturdays. The flights will end on August 14, but American plans to bring the Saint Lucia route back next winter.

In the Caribbean, island governments are eager to bring tourists and travelers back and are aggressive in creating testing protocols and rules to allow airline passengers. Some resorts even pay the bill for customers who may be quarantined because of the COVID-19 protocols.

Much of the additional emphasis on Latin America and the Caribbean drives the American hub in Miami, where it plans to increase flights by 16% over last year. But it also comes to DFW, a better gateway for American customers in the western United States, the Great Plains and Mountain West.

New routes from Latin America and the Caribbean from DFW generally come as a complement to the Miami hub, said Znotins.

American is also adding a handful of domestic routes in the United States to Miami from places like Little Rock, Ark. And Portland, Maine, to provide better connections to the South and Central America regions.

Along with the new flights to Central and South America, American said it will also begin flying from Miami to Tel Aviv, Israel, in June. The airline will fly from DFW and New York to Tel Aviv from June.