Summary
- United Airlines is the fifth-largest operator between the US and South America by non-stop capacity.
- It has 13 routes, which include Houston to Georgetown, which takes off in April.
- Only two routes have been cut in the past decade.
United Airlines is not a massive operator from the US to South America. Schedule analysis using Cirium information shows it is only the fifth-largest carrier by seats for sale in the first half of 2024 (January-June), smaller than American, LATAM, avianca, and Delta. It has fallen from third place in 2019 as others have grown much faster. United's geographic dominance is, of course, to Asia, Australasia, Europe, and the Middle East.
United to South America
The Star Alliance member has 511,000 departing seats to South America in 1H 2024 (double for both ways), unchanged versus 1H 2019. Capacity has risen by just 10% in the past decade, although twice as fast as all airlines collectively (5%).
3,000+ Daily Passengers: United Airlines’ 10 Busiest Routes In 2023
Which do you think made the cut?One in 25 of United's international seats is to South America, so 4%. While an unfair comparison for various reasons, it is 10% for American and 7% for Delta.
13 routes this first half
United's South America flights are from four of its hubs: Houston Intercontinental (eight routes), Newark (three), Chicago O'Hare (one), and Washington Dulles (one).
The 13 routes include a brand-new one: Houston to Georgetown, which takes off from Texas on April 1st (no joke) using the 737 MAX 8. It will be the first time United (or indeed Continental) has served Guyana, with the launched clearly influenced by the country's oil production. Not surprisingly, booking data shows that Houston was Georgetown's largest unserved US market in the past year.
United has an average of 13 daily flights to South America this January-June, although there are as few as 11 and as many as 15. With a double daily operation, Houston-Bogota is the most served and the shortest route.
- Houston-Bogota: double daily in the 1H; 737-800
- Newark-Bogota: daily to double daily; 737-800 (double daily from May 23rd)
- Houston-Buenos Aires: daily to 10 weekly; 777-200ER (10 until early March)
- Houston-Quito: seven to nine weekly; 737-800 (nine from late May)
- Newark-Sao Paulo: daily; 777-200ER
- Washington Dulles-Sao Paulo: daily; 767-400ER
- Houston-Rio de Janeiro: daily; 767-300ER
- Houston-Sao Paulo: daily; 787-9, 777-200ER
- Houston-Lima: daily; 767-300ER
- Chicago-Sao Paulo: daily; 787-10
- Newark-Lima: four weekly to daily; 757-200ER
- Houston-Santiago de Chile: daily; 767-300ER (ends for summer on March 29th from the US)
- Houston-Georgetown: four weekly; 737 MAX 8 (new)
A very stable network
United has only introduced one new South American route in the past decade (Houston-Georgetown). It has also cut just two:
- Houston to Caracas: last served in 2017
- Newark to Buenos Aires: last served in 2019
Flights to Buenos Aires ended due to the economic crisis and the consequent impact on performance, especially given other opportunities for its aircraft. Flights to Venezuela ended owing to the knock-on impacts of currency disputes, crew security issues, and Venezuela's wider problems. The US Department of Transportation T-100 data shows that just 48% of seats were filled in 2017.
Where else would you like the carrier to fly in South America? Let us know in the comments.