American Airlines regional subsidiary Piedmont has begun pulling aircraft out of storage for the first time since parking planes during the pandemic.

Piedmont operates American Eagle-branded flights throughout the eastern half of the U.S.

Piedmont plans to pull two 50-seat Embraer E145s per month from their parking spot in the southern Arizona desert through February. 

The activations will bring Piedmont to 70 active aircraft. 

“Bringing our first plane out of long-term storage is a big deal,” said Piedmont vice president of maintenance and engineering Bill Arndt. “The planes that are planned to leave storage will first move through heavy check and conformity before joining the fleet.” 

The moves are the latest sign that the pilot shortage coming out of the pandemic has eased. In fact, Mesa Airlines, which operates United Express flights, recently made job cuts. It furloughed 12 pilots last month and paused training for 41 incoming pilots. 

American, in particular, has sought to restore more regional flying, a segment where American believes it holds a network advantage over rivals Delta and United.

The reactivation of 50-seat planes is a strong sign for American, since they have been a lower priority than 70- and 76-seat regional jets, which are more lucrative to operate.