American has asked the Transportation Department for the rights to add 17 weekly flights to its U.S.-Brazil service this fall.
The carrier plans to add a second daily flight on its New York-Sao Paulo and Miami-Rio de Janeiro routes on Oct. 1 and Dec. 15, respectively.
It also plans to reschedule a round-robin service that operates daily on a Miami-Recife-Salvador routing so that it can offer nonstops from Miami to each point five days a week, beginning Nov. 15.
DOT action is required because U.S. airlines' flights to Brazil are capped by a government agreement. American said its plan would make use of unallocated frequencies.