Story by ANDREW KACIMAIWAI
UNITED Airlines is coming Down Under in a big way – 40% bigger.
The US carrier has just announced its northern winter schedule and they are ramping up their trans-Pacific service with 40% more flights between the US and Australia and New Zealand including a new non-stop San Francisco-Christchurch service late this year.
United will be the only carrier to directly connect the US and the South Island, an airline press statement said. It now operates 66 flights between the US and Australia/New Zealand every week.
The airline says its presence in New Zealand will be 70% greater compared to 2019.
The carrier will add new direct flights from Los Angeles to Brisbane/Auckland, increasing services from its San Francisco hub with daily flights to Brisbane, twice daily flights to Sydney and fly larger aircraft to Melbourne.
“This past winter, United enhanced our network and became the largest carrier to the South Pacific region. Now, this upcoming winter, we will expand even further,” said Patrick Quayle, Senior Vice-President of Global Network Planning and Alliances.
“Our strong partnerships with Air New Zealand and Virgin Australia provide unparalleled connectivity. With our historic expansion across five destinations in New Zealand and Australia, United is the clear choice for customers’ travel to the region.”
Under the announcement:
• From December 1, United will be the only airline to offer direct flights between the US and the South Island with three weekly flights on the San Francisco-Christchurch route, using a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner. United said its new service is part of its airline’s broader expansion efforts in New Zealand and next winter will be nearly 70% larger in New Zealand than in 2019.
• Next winter, United will add four weekly flights from Los Angeles to Auckland, using a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, starting from October 28. United says it is the only US carrier to serve Auckland year-round with its existing service from San Francisco.
• On November 29, United will operate three weekly Los Angeles-Brisbane flights on a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. From October 28, United will offer daily flights between San Francisco and Brisbane on a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, nearly tripling its seats on the Brisbane-US route compared to 2022. The airline will also fly twice daily between San Francisco and Sydney on Boeing 777-300ERs as of October 28.
• After United increased its service to Melbourne from 10 to 14 weekly roundtrip flights, with one daily flight from San Francisco and Los Angeles, from October 28, United will deploy its largest airplane, the Boeing 777-300ER, on the San Francisco-Melbourne route, adding nearly 100 daily seats to each departure, a 65% boost in seat capacity.
BRISBANE REACTION
The Brisbane Airport Corporation said United’s northern winter schedule will see the airline operate 10 services a week between the US and Brisbane by December 1.
According to Brisbane Airport Corporation CEO Gert-Jan de Graaff, these new services will turbo charge tourism and trade opportunities right across the country.
“As Brisbane Airport welcomes more than 75% of all international arrivals into Queensland, partnering with United to increase SFO frequencies and add new non-stop LAX services is terrific news for tourism and hospitality businesses from Coolangatta to the Cape,” he said.
“These new, and more frequent services are great news for jobs and the economy, and offer Queenslanders even more direct connections to United’s extensive network across North America.”
He also said Queensland exporters will receive a “significant” boost to cargo capacity.
“For example, the inaugural United Airlines flight from Brisbane to San Francisco wasn’t just filled with passengers, it carried more than 15 tonnes of high-quality refrigerated Queensland beef bound for US dining tables, generating welcome export dollars and returns for the State’s farming communities’.
Mr de Graaff, a 30-year international aviation veteran, said he always had faith that United’s SFO to BNE three-per-week service could grow to daily within 12 months.
“To be announcing six months after the first United flight arrival from San Francisco that it’s already going daily, and that LA is now on Brisbane’s schedule is just mind blowing. It’s better than anything I could have ever predicted in this current global environment” he said.
Qld Tourism Minister Stirling Hinchliffe said the United States is one of the state’s top five source countries for visitors and growing.
“Our strong trans-Pacific partnership with United and Brisbane Airport is behind the airlines’ decision to fly direct from Los Angeles for the first time from December.
“Extra San Francisco services and the new LA flights give US travellers more opportunity to escape the northern hemisphere’s winter and enjoy Queensland’s great lifestyle.
United Airlines is also thrilled with the additional flights into Brisbane later this year.
During her first official visit to Queensland as US Ambassador, Caroline Kennedy said: “This is a great result for Queensland and such an important investment by United Airlines in Australia.”
“They know what so many Americans know, that Queensland is unique in the world and a destination of choice. Americans love coming to Australia because of the wonderful people, the rich cultural heritage, and the incredible landscapes.
“This announcement is a sign of our ever-growing economic relationship and the enormous flow of students, business people, researchers and workers between Australia and the United States.” said Ambassador Kennedy. Daily services between SFO and BNE will start on October 29 with three-per-week LAX to BNE starting on December 1.
Tasman Aircraft 