Copa Airlines, the national carrier of Panama, began operations in 1947 with flights to three domestic cities using Douglas DC-3 aircraft. For nearly two decades, the airline focused solely on domestic services; it launched its first international routes in the 1960s with three weekly flights to Costa Rica, Jamaica and Colombia. In the 1980s, Copa fully suspended its domestic network and shifted entirely to international operations. The Star Alliance member has since expanded across the Americas, using Panama’s position between North and South America to provide one-stop connections throughout the region.

Today, it is considered one of the major airlines in the Western Hemisphere. The carrier now serves more than 30 destinations across the Americas. Indeed, the United States plays a central role in its network. Copa launched its first US route in December 1989 to Miami International Airport and has gradually expanded its presence since then; it currently flies to 18 US cities. According to aviation analytics provider Cirium, the airline scheduled more than 66,800 one-way flights this year, with over 12,600 operated on US routes.

Copa Airlines Currently Flies To 18 US Cities

It operates more than 300 weekly flights to the United States, which works out to as many as 45 daily services. From Panama City’s Tocumen International Airport, Copa connects to cities on the East Coast, including Miami, Orlando, New York, Boston and Baltimore. In addition, the airline flies to West Coast cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco, Denver, Las Vegas and San Diego. Unsurprisingly, Miami is Copa’s largest US market.

The airline has served the route for 36 years and marked another anniversary yesterday, December 1. Currently, it operates seven to eight daily departures and carries more than 800,000 passengers annually on the city pair. Furthermore, Orlando is its second-biggest US market, with six to seven daily flights. Copa recently celebrated 25 years of service on the route. Besides, New York JFK, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Juan, Boston and Tampa also see multiple daily departures.

*Frequencies shown in the table are based on scheduled operations for the week of December 15–21

** From mid-December, Copa will add extra weekly flights on its San Diego and Raleigh–Durham routes to accommodate holiday travel demand

Copa Airlines Increases Fort Lauderdale Flights To Daily

Notably, the airline is strengthening its position in South Florida, which remains its most important US market. Starting December 8, it will expand its Fort Lauderdale–Panama City service to daily nonstop flights, up from the current five weekly departures. The schedule stays the same, with flights leaving Fort Lauderdale at 17:09 and arriving in Panama City at 20:13. Copa first launched the route in 2014, and the recent change reflects sustained demand driven by leisure travel and visiting-friends-and-relatives (VFR) traffic.

Furthermore, Fort Lauderdale is a major beach destination with a large and growing Latin American community, which makes it a logical market for added capacity. OAG Traffic Analyzer data shows that more than 23,600 passengers traveled between the two cities between August 2023 and July 2024. Additionally, US Department of Transportation data also shows strong demand for Panama, with total traffic exceeding 4.3 million passengers for the year ending June 2025, an increase of about 11% compared with the previous year.

David DeFossey, Regional Commercial Manager for North America at Copa Airlines, said, “With the increase to daily service, just in time for the busy holiday and winter travel season, we reaffirm our commitment to fostering cultural exchange, supporting economic growth, and delivering the world-class service travelers have come to expect.”

Copa Airlines’ Recent US Network Expansions

Indeed, Copa has steadily expanded its presence in the US. In recent years, it has added several new destinations to its network. In June, the Star Alliance member inaugurated service to San Diego, its third destination in California. As noted previously in the table, the airline operates the route four times a week on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays. Flights depart Tocumen International Airport at 13:16 local time and arrive at San Diego International Airport at 17:54.

The return legs leave San Diego at 21:06 and arrive in Panama City at 05:20 the following morning. Furthermore, last year, Copa also launched flights to Raleigh–Durham, offering four weekly services to the capital region of North Carolina. Additionally, the airline expanded its service to Tampa last year. Previously operated six times a week, the route was increased to daily as demand continued to grow.