American Airlines has hubs in nine cities in the United States. These are in Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Washington, DC.

American Airlines tends to focus on short-haul routes more than its competitors, and in this respect, its hubs in Dallas and Charlotte are perhaps most critical due to their size and comprehensive network. In addition, several hubs have large international networks covering Europe, Asia, and Oceania, but the company’s most significant international hub is in Miami.

The carrier first announced Miami International Airport as a hub in 1988, and it has grown the hub substantially. Miami has long been important to American Airlines since the hub was established, and it largely serves the same role today as it always has. But in 2025, given current market conditions and American Airlines’ position relative to competitors, Miami is arguably more important than ever. Here’s how Miami fits into American Airlines’ overall network, and why it’s more critical than ever to the airline’s success.

American Airlines And Miami International Airport

American Airlines first declared Miami International Airport as a hub in 1988. The company had long desired a base in the Southeast US, comparable to Delta’s Atlanta hub, but had failed with prior efforts in Raleigh-Durham and Nashville. In the late 1980s, however, competitor Eastern Airlines was losing money and contracting. American was considering moving into either Eastern’s hub in Atlanta or Miami, but Atlanta would come with stiff competition from Delta. If American were to move into Miami, it would only need to fight off a weak Eastern Airlines.

Eastern Airlines initially attempted to maintain its once-strong Miami hub, but the carrier ultimately sold off its profitable Latin America routes to American, and sister carrier Continental Airlines also sold the authority to fly between Miami and London to American. Eastern Airlines liquidated and ceased all operations in 1991, leaving American Airlines virtually uncontested in the 305. But Miami’s location also means that its network is structured differently from Atlanta or American’s prior hub attempts in Raleigh-Durham and Nashville.

Miami is located on the US East Coast and at the bottom of the state of Florida, making it impractical for east-to-west or north-to-south domestic connections. However, Miami itself is a major business and tourist hub, and perhaps more importantly, it’s perfectly positioned as a connecting hub between the US and Latin America. Atlanta and Charlotte are farther north, while Houston and Dallas are located farther west. In addition, Miami also has a strong local demand for travel to the Caribbean, Central America, and South America.

American Airlines’ Current Miami Operation

Miami International Airport is American Airlines’ third-largest hub, behind Charlotte and Dallas/Fort Worth, but ahead of Phoenix. American operates flights to other domestic destinations, as well as routes within the Americas and to Europe. It bases the Airbus A320 family, the Boeing 737, the Boeing 777, and the Boeing 787 Dreamliner out of Miami. While American does face competition from low-cost carriers at nearby Fort Lauderdale, it’s essentially unrivaled in Miami International Airport and holds a majority market share.

Data from Cirium, an aviation data analytics company, shows that American Airlines’ busiest route from Miami in 2025 was to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Throughout the year, this route sees 4,298 flights each way. American’s busiest route from Miami to a non-hub airport in 2025 is to Tampa Bay International Airport, with 3,102 flights each direction. The busiest route to a non-hub airport outside of Florida is to Boston Logan International Airport, with 2,245 flights, while the busiest route to an international destination is to Havana, with 2,440 flights.

Miami sees significant service to the rest of the US due to high business traffic and strong tourism demand. However, it is the Latin America network that truly defines this hub. From here, American Airlines serves nearly 70 destinations in the Caribbean, Central America, and South America. This hub has enabled American Airlines to become the largest US carrier to these regions, and in turn, Miami has become the US’s largest gateway to Latin America.

Why Miami Is More Important Now Than Ever

American Airlines is struggling to compete against its peers. In its most recent quarter, American reported over $100 million in losses, while Delta Air Lines and United Airlines both reported over $1 billion in profits for the third quarter of 2025. There are several factors why American is falling behind its peers, but two major factors are its network design and fleet decisions, which go hand in hand. American currently has nearly 100 fewer widebody aircraft than United Airlines, due to the retirement of its Airbus A330 and Boeing 767 fleets during the COVID-19 pandemic, combined with Boeing 787 delivery delays.

Currently, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines are taking advantage of an increase in long-haul premium leisure travel. American’s network is primarily focused on domestic flying, and it lacks the widebody aircraft to expand its international network to replicate the networks of its competitors. The airline has also previously deferred 787 deliveries, showing that American is having difficulty with maintaining a long-haul network beyond what it currently flies. As such, premium leisure travelers are flocking to Delta and United.

American Airlines is behind in Europe, Asia, Oceania, and doesn’t even fly to Africa. The one region where it does hold an advantage, however, is Latin America. This stronghold it holds in the region not only helps it maintain competitiveness, but could be used to help it claw back wealthy travelers it lost after the pandemic. In addition, while South America is not as popular as Europe for premium leisure passengers, the Caribbean remains extremely popular with vacationers, and expanding American’s network here could further solidify it as the choice for travel to the region.

How Miami Will Continue To Define American’s Success In Latin America

American Airlines is at a disadvantage when it comes to its long-haul network. It’s fourth in New York (behind Delta, United, and JetBlue), while United holds the number one title in Chicago and Delta holds that title in Los Angeles. Philadelphia is ultimately a smaller market than New York or Boston for transatlantic travel, and some potential customers in Pennsylvania choose to fly out of Newark instead. Dallas has high international demand, but Phoenix has limited long-haul service, and Charlotte’s demand to Europe is also limited compared to hubs like Atlanta.

Miami, however, is a goldmine for Latin American service. It has a perfect combination of strong local demand, high business traffic, and an ideal location for connections. The Caribbean remains popular with vacationers, and while South America is low-yielding compared to Europe or Asia, the carrier can capitalize on business travel by expanding premium cabins and increasing flight frequencies. American is already deploying new Boeing 787-9s with 51 business class seats, while it has announced plans to reconfigure its entire Boeing 777 fleet with larger business class cabins.

In addition, Miami has high demand to Europe, and rather crucially, demand remains constant or even increases during the winter season, when Europe demand from the rest of the US typically plummets. Increasing Europe service out of Miami would strengthen American’s market position in a region where it lags behind competitors, and the dynamics of the market in Miami mean that growth could be more sustainable, as a reduction during the winter may not be necessary. Of course, this would also be risky and would likely require adding costly widebodies.

The Risks Facing American Airlines In Latin America

Part of why American Airlines has been able to maintain a lead in Latin America is its joint venture with fellow oneworld member LATAM, the largest airline in South America. In 2020, however, Delta Air Lines purchased a 20% stake in the airline, and LATAM subsequently cut ties with American Airlines, left oneworld, while starting a new joint venture with Delta that was approved in 2022. While Atlanta is not Miami in terms of its potential to serve as a Latin America hub, American’s position in the region is far more tenuous than before.

Currently, American Airlines partners with Brazilian low-cost carrier GOL and with budget airline JetSMART, which operates in both Chile and Argentina. However, neither of these airlines is part of oneworld, and both operate narrowbody airliners only, limiting the destinations they can serve. American will not be setting up joint ventures with either airline anytime soon, all while Delta can expand its footprint in the region via its highly lucrative partnership with the continent’s largest airline.

For now, American Airlines remains the king of the US three in Latin America, and Miami is the key reason as to why. Long term, however, American Airlines will face stiffer competition than ever, and if the company isn’t proactive in fighting off its competitors, it may lose its lead or even fall behind.