A row of United Airlines airliners parked at the gate at Denver International Airport in Denver, Colorado.
Robert Alexander | Getty Images
united airlines With plans to bolster its flight schedule and add a new lounge at Denver International Airport, the airline is betting that demand for flights at its fastest-growing hub will continue to rise.
United Airlines said Tuesday it will add 35 flights at the Colorado airport this year. The new nonstop routes include service to Greensboro, North Carolina; Dayton, Ohio; Lexington, Kentucky; and San Juan, Puerto Rico. The airline is averaging 450 daily departures on its Denver route this summer, a spokeswoman said.
United is the airport largest carrier Last year’s market share was 46%, compared with Southwest Airlines‘ 31% share, Frontier Airlines 10%, delta airlines 5% and American airlines According to airport data, there are 4%.
But its new service comes as changing travel patterns during the pandemic are forcing airlines to rethink their networks and where to best deploy planes, which are in short supply.
Airport traffic has increased rapidly during the pandemic as cities grow and travelers seek outdoor destinations under restrictions aimed at stemming the spread of Covid-19.Last year, Denver Airport reportedly served more than 69 million passengers, jumping from 16th place in 2019 to third-busiest airport in the world Airports Council International.
By comparison, San Francisco, another United hub that enjoyed a business travel business before the pandemic, served 57.5 million passengers in 2019, compared with just 42.3 million in San Francisco last year.
United also plans to open a new lounge and reopen one of two large remodeled clubs, the latest sign that airlines are scrambling to make room for large numbers of high-spending travelers.
Last year, United opened a carry-on mini-lounge in Denver designed to serve passengers connecting on other flights.