- United Airlines announced three new destinations and four new city pairs coming to its network in summer 2023.
- The carrier is also upping its frequency to London and Paris, with only Polaris-equipped planes flying to Heathrow.
United will continue its reign as the largest transatlantic operator in the US next summer.
The Chicago-based carrier announced its summer 2023 network on Wednesday, revealing three new destinations in Europe and four new city pairs not flown in 2022.
"Next summer United is offering the best of both worlds: we're making it easier for our customers to visit the most popular cities in Europe, but we're also expanding our reach to give travelers access to new places they haven't yet experienced," Patrick Quayle, United's SVP of network planning and alliances, said in a press release.
New destinations — all of which will fly from Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey — include Stockholm, Sweden; Malaga, Spain; and Dubai, UAE, which is part of a new partnership with Emirates. Malaga is the only truly new pin to United's route map as the carrier last flew to Dubai in 2016 and to Stockholm in 2019.
The new city pairs will fly from United's hubs of San Francisco, Chicago, and Washington, DC to Berlin, Rome, Barcelona, and Shannon, Ireland. The carrier is also adding two frequencies — one from Los Angeles to London and the second from Washington DC to Paris.
In a conference call on Tuesday, Quayle told media that the expansion is 10% to 11% more flying compared to 2022, and about 30% more than in 2019.
The two additional frequencies will use Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft, and Quayle said all United flights to London will have Polaris and Premium Plus cabins.
"No more 757s into the largest premium market in the world," he said.
According to Quayle, all of the new routes will be summer seasonal, with the exception of Dubai, which will be year-round.
The new routes will complement United's summer 2022 route map, which was the largest transatlantic expansion in its history. Of the five long-haul routes announced last October, only Newark to Bergen will not return in summer 2023, Quayle told reporters.
United's announcement comes as the carrier sees demand to Europe soar 20% compared to 2019, with Quayle noting in the call that September 2022 demand was "incredibly strong," and "sequentially stronger than August."
With the transatlantic expansion, as well as the reopening of several nations, like Japan and New Zealand, United said it will fly to 37 cities in Europe, Africa, India, and the Middle East, which is more than all US carriers combined.
In the conference call, Quayle said the carrier's Asia network is "running at full speed this winter" to all destinations, with the exception of China, Hong Kong, and Japan. Capacity to Japan will slowly phase in over the winter months, he said.
In the South Pacific, Quayle told reporters that United is flying its largest-ever network in the region. The carrier is the biggest operator between the US and Australia, according to Quayle, flying 10 weekly flights between San Francisco and Sydney alone.
However, managing such a robust network can be challenging, especially with passenger caps being implemented in airports like London Heathrow and Amsterdam Schiphol. But, Quayle says United is confident the routes will launch in 2023.
"We've been really, really concerted to work with the operations, work with our flight team, work with the aircraft operations team, and this is a schedule we believe we can operate," he said. "We are committed to providing a better passenger experience, so we have every intention of flying the scheduled as planned."
Here's a closer look at the 7 new transatlantic routes launching next summer.
Between Newark and Dubai
United will fly year-round between Newark and Dubai starting on March 25 using a Boeing 777-200ER. Customers will be able to then connect to over 100 destinations in the Middle East and beyond on Emirates or its sister carrier flydubai.
Between Newark and Stockholm
United will fly between Newark and Stockholm starting on May 27 using a Boeing 757-200. The airline will directly compete with Scandinavian Airlines on the route, as well as indirectly with Finnair and Delta Air Lines from New York's John F. Kennedy Airport.
Between Newark and Malaga
United will fly between Newark and Malaga starting on May 31 using a Boeing 757-200, making it the largest operator to Spain. The airline will have no competitors on the route.
Between San Francisco and Rome
United will fly between San Francisco and Rome starting on May 25 using a Boeing 777-200ER. The airline will have no competitors on the route.
Between Chicago and Shannon
United will fly between Chicago and Shannon starting on May 25 using a Boeing 757-200. The airline will have no competitors on the route.
Between Chicago and Barcelona
United will fly between Chicago and Barcelona starting on May 25 using a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner. The airline will compete with American Airlines on the route.
Between Washington, DC and Berlin
United will fly between Washington DC and Berlin starting on May 25 using a Boeing 767-400ER. The airline will have no competitors on the route.