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San Diego lands coveted Latin American airline, gets link to 'Hub of the Americas'
Edward Russell
Contributor
Edward Russell is a contributor for TPG. An AvGeek at heart, he covered the airline business at FlightGlobal for eight years and previously covered finance in New York and Hong Kong.
Feb. 26, 2025
•
3 min read
San Diego lands coveted Latin American airline, gets link to 'Hub of the Americas'
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San Diego will have a new nonstop route to Latin America come June when Copa Airlines lands in the Southern California metropolis.
The Star Alliance carrier will connect San Diego International Airport (SAN) to its “Hub of the Americas” at Panama City’s Tocumen International Airport (PTY). Service will begin June 25, with four weekly flights operating Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays on a Boeing 737.
Copa will be San Diego’s only Latin American airline when flights begin.
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"With the addition of San Diego, we enhance connectivity between Southern California and Central America, South America, and the Caribbean, fostering tourism and commercial exchange across the continent," Pedro Heilbron, the CEO of Copa, said in a statement.
That means new one-stop connecting options to places like Medellin, Colombia; Mendoza, Argentina; and San Jose, Costa Rica.
San Diego has long sought a Latin American link. At Routes events — sometimes known as speed dating for airlines and airports — airport executives have regularly met with leaders of Latin American carriers in the multiyear marathon run to land a nonstop service to the region.
The city previously boasted nonstops to Mexico on Volaris and Aeromexico, schedule data from aviation analytics firm Cirium shows. The airlines ended flights in 2016 and 2010, respectively.
Today, the only flights south of the border from San Diego are to beach spots popular with American visitors. Cirium schedules show Alaska Airlines flies to Los Cabos’ San Jose del Cabo International Airport (SJD) and Puerto Vallarta International Airport (PVR) while Southwest Airlines flies to SJD.
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Other foreign airlines in San Diego include British Airways, Japan Airlines, KLM and Lufthansa.
San Diego is Copa’s 17th U.S. destination and third in California after Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and San Francisco International Airport (SFO). The airline’s last U.S. addition was Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU) in 2024.
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The airline plans to grow its schedule by 7 to 8% year-over-year in 2025, executives told investors earlier in February. That growth includes a combination of new routes, more flights on existing routes, and larger planes — like the Boeing 737 MAX 9 it has on order, which has up to 172 seats.
Copa flyers can earn points in the airline’s ConnectMiles program or on any of its Star Alliance partners, including United Airlines’ MileagePlus program.
Below are details of Copa’s new Panama City-to-San Diego nonstop:
- PTY-SAN: Departs at 1:16 p.m. local time and arrives at 6:15 p.m. local time
- SAN-PTY: Departs at 8:58 p.m. local time and arrives at 5:20 a.m. local time the next day
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Featured image by SEAN CUDAHY/THE POINTS GUY
Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
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| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
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Why We Chose It
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- Packed with credits foodies will enjoy
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Cons
- Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
- Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
- You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
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- $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
- $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
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- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- Annual Fee is $325.
- Terms Apply.