A United Airlines Boeing 777-200 lands at San Francisco International Airport in San Francisco, California.
Louis Nastro | Reuters
United Airlines plans to expand its services to Australia and New Zealand later this 12 months, in keeping with the carrier’s latest assumption that travelers will proceed to book international trips.
The expansion to 66 weekly flights between the United States and the 2 countries marks a 40% increase in flights from last 12 months, the airline said on Tuesday. The schedule also means around 75% more seats in those countries than in the identical 2019 season, United said.
The brand new schedule includes direct flights between San Francisco and Christchurch, New Zealand on a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner from December 1 and from Los Angeles to Auckland, New Zealand on a 787-9 from October 28. builds services from San Francisco and Los Angeles to Brisbane, Australia, and uses its largest aircraft for flights between San Francisco and Melbourne, Australia.
Airline executives are optimistic about international travel demand and are expanding their schedules to cater for the rebound.
Delta Airlines last week forecast second-quarter results ahead of analysts’ estimates and highlighted the actual strength of international travel.
“Internationally, we’re excited concerning the momentum we’re seeing and expect record revenue and profitability for the summer tourist season,” Delta CEO Glen Hauenstein said on Thursday during an earnings call.
It added that the airline was increasing its international destinations by 20% within the quarter ending June and had blocked around 75% of its bookings.
United Airlines is anticipated to report first-quarter results after the market closes on Tuesday and will provide one other demand forecast ahead of the height of the summer tourist season.
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