American Airlines to add flights from Provo to DFW, Phoenix this fall

PROVO — American Airlines announced it will be adding daily flights from Provo to Dallas-Fort Worth and Phoenix beginning Oct. 7.

The airline will operate two flights each day to DFW and one to Phoenix. All flights will be on CRJ700 aircraft with room for 65 passengers.

“We are thrilled to offer service to Provo for the first time starting this fall,” said Joe Sottile, American Airlines director of domestic network planning. “This new year-round service will offer convenient connections to destinations across the United States and the world on our comprehensive global network, giving local residents more ways to visit the places they want to visit most.”

Provo will be American Airline’s third destination in Utah after Salt Lake City and St. George. The airline resumed seasonal service between St. George and DFW earlier this month.

Tickets go on sale April 22.

“We had a forward-looking vision when we built the Provo Airport. The monumental announcement of the arrival of American Airlines proves we were on their radar as much as our airport tower will soon be on theirs,” said Provo Mayor Michelle Kaufusi. “With year-round, daily service, American Airlines is showing their commitment to Provo and we couldn’t be happier to welcome them home with this game-changing service.”

“Network service by a major carrier has been a focus of our air service development efforts at the Provo Airport even before the opening of our new terminal,” added Brian Torgersen, director of the Provo Airport. “We have been telling our story to all who would listen, and American Airlines has stepped up to provide exceptional service to two exceptional major hub airports. We couldn’t be more thrilled to welcome American Airlines and the entire world to Provo.”

American Airlines Provo flight schedule

Provo to DFW:

• 5:20 a.m. (arriving at 9:10 a.m.)
• 12:51 p.m. (arriving at 4:41 p.m.)

DFW to Provo:

• 10:35 a.m. (arriving at 12:21 p.m.)
• 7:20 p.m. (arriving at 9:06 p.m.)

Provo to Phoenix:

• 3:28 p.m. (arriving at 4:23 p.m.)

Phoenix to Provo:

• 12:15 p.m. (arriving at 2:58 p.m.)

DFW and Phoenix serve as hubs for American Airlines. The airline operates over 200 daily flights out of Phoenix and over 800 from DFW, meaning Provo customers are one flight away from dozens of destinations across the U.S., Mexico, the Caribbean and Latin America.

Last year, Kaufusi announced the Provo Airport — which already services commercial flights through Breeze Airways and Allegiant Air — would soon become an international airport.

To receive international flights, the airport would need to build a separate baggage area and customs processing facility. Former Provo Mayor John Curtis, who now represents Utah in the House of Representatives, said he has secured federal funds for the airport’s expansion. There are currently four gates inside the Provo Airport, which could be expanded to 10.

“One of the most exciting things I did as mayor was bringing scheduled service to Provo Airport, and it’s been incredible to see it flourish. In Congress, I’ve kept that momentum going by securing funds for the airport’s expansion, enabling Utahns to travel across the country,” Curtis said. “I’m thankful for American Airlines’ recognition of our infrastructure achievements with its new service and my gratitude extends to everyone involved in this success.”

Last month, Breeze announced it would fly from Provo to DFW twice a week, beginning on June 7. Breeze also offers nonstop flights out of Provo to Orange County/Anaheim, California; Phoenix, Arizona; and San Francisco, California. It also offers one-stop flights to San Bernadino/Riverside, California; Grand Junction, Colorado; Orlando, Florida; Raleigh/Durham, North Carolina; Richmond, Virginia; and Charleston, South Carolina.

The airport is currently working on its expansion project. Construction on the expansion of the terminal apron began last fall. Torgernson said it’s a long process to complete. “Now, we just wait for that lake bottom mud to settle out and be able to provide a firm foundation for that concrete to be placed, hopefully as soon as this fall or next spring.”

Torgernson said they’ll soon focus their attention on expanding inside the airport terminal, with the first phase of expansion being their ticket counter area. “That’s the kind of bottleneck area right now.” Torgernson is hoping construction on that area will begin this summer. “We have a good amount of funding from our funding partners that were able to initiate at least the initial stages of that expansion. And as more funding comes online, we’ll be able to go with the full terminal expansion and add those gates that we badly need.”

Allegiant Air flies from Provo to Portland, Oregon; Las Vegas, Nevada; Chicago, Illinois; Houston and Austin, Texas; Phoenix, Arizona; San Diego, San Bernadino and Santa Ana/Orange County, California; Orlando, Florida; and Nashville, Tennessee.