United Airlines has disclosed seven additional Europe routes for next summer. While three are brand-new for the carrier and haven't been announced before, the others are either new but previously revealed or have been operated before and are returning. It comes as United adds a second daily service on two existing routes, returning them to that level after a big absence.

What's happening?

The following table summarizes the route additions. Four of them will have no head-to-head competition, while two others will coexist with a partner carrier. Only Chicago to Barcelona will have a non-aligned direct competitor in the form of American. It inaugurated the route back in May 2017.

A look at Rome and Berlin

It's noteworthy that San Francisco-Rome has never been served by any airline, at least not since 1990. That's despite booking data showing that over 93,000 roundtrip passengers traveled between the two in 2019, all of whom transited en route. Indeed, Rome was by far San Francisco's largest unserved European market that year and by far Rome's largest unserved market in North America.

While Washington Dulles to Berlin (then Tegel) was previously served, it had just seven months of flights. Lufthansa started it in March 2001, and it ended later that year because of the 9/11 atrocity.

And Málaga

Delta ran JFK to Málaga, in Spain's very popular Andalusia, summer seasonally between June 2008 and July 2019. Its entry followed the end of the route by Air Comet (January 2002-December 2004 using the A310-300), which followed the exit of Air Europa (January 1999-February 2000, 767-200ER).

According to the US Department of Transportation, Delta transported 367,000 passengers to Málaga in its 11 years, with an average seat load factor of 85%, although many months were 90%+. It used the 757-200ER and sometimes the 767-300ER with up to a 1x daily offering. United will capitalize on this readymade market.

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Double daily on two existing routes

Elsewhere, United will increase Los Angeles to London Heathrow from the current 1x daily to 2x daily on March 25th using the 787-9. It means double daily returns after 17 years.

As Air New Zealand no longer has Auckland-Los Angeles-Heathrow, United's expansion means Star Alliance will be back at 2x daily. That'll strengthen its position in this significant market given Virgin Atlantic is joining SkyTeam, growing the alliance's share. It means that, across all airlines, Los Angeles-Heathrow will have 11x daily flights, surpassing the previous record of 10x.

From June 2nd, United will double Washington Dulles to Paris Charles De Gaulle, the world's number one airport by the number of airlines. It'll have 2x daily, a frequency not seen since August 2015, with the second daily by the 787-8. It means that, when Air France is included, the airport pair will have up to 5x daily services, another record-breaking level.

What do you make of it all? Let us know in the comments.

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