United’s deal to expand 10 Chicago destinations deals blow to American Airlines

Folks at American Airlines’ Fort Worth headquarters are probably shaking their heads right now.

That’s because United Airlines just announced 10 new destinations using Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport (ORD) as its hub, all set to open next year.

Six of the 10 destinations will be new to travelers from ORD, while four destinations will compete with American Airlines.

Destinations exclusive to United include:

• Eugene, Oregon
• Lynchburg, Virginia
• Monterey, California
• Paducah, Kentucky
• Santa Barbara, California
• st george utah

All flights operate daily except flights to Monterey and St. George. These two exceptions operate seasonally on Saturdays only.

Meanwhile, United’s other new routes include regional service:

• Idaho Falls, Idaho
• Marquette, Michigan
• Rochester, Minnesota
• Wausau, Wisconsin

All of these routes will operate daily except Idaho Falls. Idaho Falls operates on Saturdays only.

Additionally, United will increase service next summer from weekend-only to daily service in several Chicago markets, including Hilton Head, South Carolina; Halifax, Nova Scotia; Sun Valley, Idaho; Nassau, Bahamas; and Aruba.

Additionally, West Palm Beach, Florida will transition from a seasonal market to a year-round market.

All of this growth has been achieved through ORD’s gate reallocation process, and United recently received five new gates at the airport through the city’s annual reallocation process.

American Airlines, which also operates a hub in Chicago, was unhappy with how the gate assignment process worked. It argued that ORD’s ongoing Gate L expansion project had an “inappropriate trigger” and that the airport could not award the new gate until the construction process was completed.

American took the city’s decision to court, and a judge ultimately ruled in United’s favor, allowing the airline to continue seeking more property at the airport.

More gates means more flights, and more flights means more relevance. United’s move isn’t a disservice to American’s hub operations in ORD, but it certainly limits American’s growth potential in the city in the coming years.

“United already operates its busiest flights in history at O’Hare, and now these additional gates unlock new opportunities to connect cities across the country, serve more customers in Chicago and strengthen our hometown hub,” United Airlines network chief Patrick Quayle said in a statement.

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