American bullish on Cuba despite demand uncertainty

When Cuba opened up to U.S. airlines earlier this year, nearly all rushed in with requests to add new service to the island. Against that enthusiasm, however, some industry executives openly wondered whether demand would live up to the hype.

Without regular airline service to the island in five decades, there was little data available to carriers in trying to assess potential demand for flights to new destinations. And unlike other foreign markets, Cuba remains a unique and highly regulated place for U.S. airlines to do business.

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American Airlines joins rush to Cuba with first flights

American Airlines officials seemed to acknowledge on a quarterly earnings call Thursday that they're still feeling out the company's new service to Cuba, where American opened five new destinations for regular commercial service during the third quarter.

Those new destinations became possible after the Obama administration allowed scheduled flights to resume after a 50-year hiatus, part of an initiative to restore diplomatic relations with the Communist country 90 miles from Florida.

American won more flights than any other U.S. carrier from among the 110 total daily round-trip flights that were up for grabs to 10 cities in Cuba. Havana was capped at 20 daily flights, of which American won five. American's first flights to Havana begin later this year, despite challenges selling tickets since flights to other cities began in August.

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“I think everyone is struggling a little bit in terms of selling in Cuba,” Don Casey, American's senior vice president of revenue management, said during the call. “There a lot of restrictions that are still in place that has made it difficult to sell."

Casey said the greatest strength for forward booking has been in Havana, where American has long had a charter operation.

“We’re in it for the long haul,” American CEO Doug Parker added. “This is really a new market. We’re excited to be the largest carrier there. We’re committed to Cuba and making it work.”

The USA’s new Havana flights, by the numbers