Various major US carriers have regional brands, where partner airlines ferry passengers from smaller airports into larger hubs for onward travel. For the most part, these flights are on the shorter side, but, as always, there are exceptions. For instance, American Airlines has multiple routes that have distances greater than 1,400 miles long and are operated by its regional feeder partners under the American Eagle brand this November.
According to present scheduling data made available by Cirium, an aviation analytics company, American Airlines’ longest regional route this month links Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) with Québec City (YQB) in Canada. However, American Eagle only served this 1,655-mile (2,663.5 km) corridor once this month, on November 1, so this article will explore those that see more regular service and exceed the 1,400-mile mark.
American Airlines’ Longest Regular Regional Route
Cirium’s data shows that 
American Airlines‘ longest regularly operated American Eagle route this November links Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) with Lambert Field (STL) in St Louis. This corridor clocks in at 1,592 miles (2,562 km) in length, and sees daily service by SkyWest Airlines’ Embraer E175s under the American Eagle brand. According to aeroLOPA, these aircraft have 12 first class and 64 economy class seats.
Flying westbound from St Louis to Los Angeles, American Airlines flight AA4885 takes four hours and 25 minutes to connect these two cities, departing at 07:00 and arriving at 09:25 local time. The eastbound leg, AA6502, meanwhile, is an evening affair, departing at 18:17 and arriving at 23:42 with a block time of three hours and 25 minutes. American is currently in the process of refurbishing its regional fleet, and it explained in September that:
“The clean, modern cabin design features updated seat coverings that mirror the look and feel of the mainline fleet, because consistency matters when customers are on the move.”
Californian Corridors Are Common
Given its more distant location on the West Coast of the US, it is unsurprising to see that Californian airports feature in all three of American’s longest regular regional routes this month. Second on the list is the 1,494-mile (2,404 km) corridor from Dallas/Fort Worth to Charles M Schulz Sonoma County Airport (STS) in Santa Rosa, which Envoy Air’s Embraer E175s are serving under the American Eagle brand 27 times this month.
While not quite as long as the aforementioned route from St Louis to Los Angeles, the westbound leg of this route is still a four-hour affair, with flight AA3977 taking four hours and eight minutes between departing DFW at 09:59 and arriving in Santa Rosa at 12:07 local time. After a turnaround of just over an hour, the return leg (AA3393) leaves Santa Rosa at 13:18 and arrives at DFW at 18:54, with a block time of three hours and 36 minutes.
Returning to Los Angeles International Airport, this West Coast hub also sees regular American Eagle flights from Des Moines International (DSM) in Iowa. This 1,447-mile (2,329 km) route is served more than daily on average by SkyWest Airlines’ Embraer E175s, with 32 westbound and 31 eastbound flights scheduled this month. The former direction takes four hours and one minute, compared to three hours and 41 minutes for the latter.
American Airlines’ Regional Operation Expands With 33 New Embraer E175s
Deliveries of the new regional jets will begin next year.
What About The Bombardier CRJ Series?
Thus far, all of the routes discussed have been served by Embraer E175 twinjets operated by American Airlines’ regional feeder partners. However, American Eagle flights also use rear-engined aircraft from the Bombardier CRJ series, specifically the CRJ700 and CRJ900 models, so let’s conclude by examining the longest route regularly served by such jets. The corridor in question links Phoenix, Arizona (PHX) with Cedar Rapids (CID), Iowa.
This route is 1,252 miles (2,015 km) long, and is served twice a day for the majority of the month by Bombardier CRJ700 jets operated by SkyWest Airlines under the American Eagle brand. According to aeroLOPA, these aircraft have nine first class and 56 economy seats. Passengers can expect flight times of just over three hours flying from Phoenix to Cedar Rapids, and just over three-and-a-half hours coming back to Arizona.
