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United Adds Four Flights From Denver

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A United 737MAX at Boeing’s Renton factory. (Image: AirlineGeeks | Katie Bailey)

This week United released its updated schedule for the spring, which includes four new routes from its Denver hub to destinations in Florida. The move is part of the carrier’s preparation for increased leisure demand during Spring Break week, as reported by The Points Guy.

In a statement, Ankit Gupta, United’s Vice President of Domestic Network Planning, said, “We want our customers to know that no matter where they want to go for spring break, United Airlines can get them there. This is the time of year when our customers start thinking about and planning the perfect getaway, and with our expanded spring schedule, we are offering more flights and more destinations than ever before.”

Alongside with increased frequencies to other destinations, United is adding flights from its Denver hub to four destinations in Florida between March and May. Destin-Fort Walton Beach will be served with 32 flights; Pensacola and Sarasota-Brandenton with 18 flights each and West Palm Beach with 39 frequencies.

Flights to Destin and Pensacola will be operated by SkyWest DBA for United Express using regional Embraer 175 jets, while flights to Sarasota and Palm Beach will be flown by United mainline using Airbus A320s.

Over the past few months, Denver has been an important piece in United’s strategy in navigating the pandemic. As business travel has yet to rebound in the U.S and much of the world, airlines have been looking for opportunities that rely on leisure travel in order to get revenue.

In October, United increased flights between Denver and five destinations in Mexico and the Caribbean including Cancún, Cozumel and Puerto Vallarta. Around the same time, the Chicago-based carrier also increased frequencies between its hubs in Houston, Washington Dulles and Newark and Mexico, Central America and and the Caribbean.

Before the pandemic, Denver was set to become a more prominent hub in United’s network. In January 2020, the airline announced plans to add 50 daily departures from the Colorado airport. This would follow a strategy that looked to offer three mid-continent hubs along with Houston and Chicago to act as points of transit for passengers traveling across the U.S.

This was part of United’s plan to maximize revenue from connections in its-Mile-high hub. Before the pandemic, Denver was one of United’s most profitable hubs according to The Center for Aviation (CAPA), where it operated almost 60% of departures.

Though the pandemic has shuffled the way aviation works, debunking pricing models that were previously used as rules of thumb and slashing passenger numbers worldwide, United is continuing to find new ways to reinforce the value of its Denver hub.

Jose Antonio Payet
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  • Jose Antonio Payet

    As a geography nerd, Jose has always been fascinated by the complexities of the airline industry and its ability to bring the world closer together. Born and raised in Peru, now studying in the UK. he has travelled around America, Europe and South East Asia. His favorite aircraft is the Boeing 767-300, which he has flown many times during his childhood; although now the A350 is slowly growing up on him.

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