Maui is one of three Chicago O'Hare route announcements American Airlines made Thursday as a turf war intensifies with United in the Windy City.
American will start flights from Chicago to Maui next winter. The daily seasonal service is slated to operate from Dec. 17 through March 27. American will fly the route with Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft equipped with business, premium economy and economy cabins.
O'Hare will be American's fourth gateway to Maui, joining existing year-round service from its Dallas-Fort Worth, Phoenix and Los Angeles hubs. It will compete on the route with United, which operates weekly service year-round between O'Hare and Maui.
American on May 21 will begin twice-daily American Eagle regional service to Allentown, Pa., and Columbia, S.C., competing with United on both routes.
"We're trying to find where in the Upper Midwest, where in the domestic market, we can bring service to for the first time or enhance service with more frequency," said Ben Humphrey, American's vice president of O'Hare operations. "Maui's a good example of that."
American will also compete against United on two new routes from Los Angeles that it announced on Thursday. Daily service connecting LAX with Washington Dulles and Cleveland will launch April 7.
United flies LAX-Washington Dulles as often as seven times per day, and LAX-Cleveland between once and three times per day depending on the season and day of the week.
American already flies between LAX and its hub at Washington Reagan National Airport twice daily, competing against Delta and Alaska.