Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and San Francisco International Airport (SFO) are the two primary hubs for transpacific operations by US legacy carrier United Airlines. Aside from a few select flights from the carrier’s other hubs (primarily Houston and Guam), the airline’s entire Asian route network is based out of California’s two largest airports.
Given rapid changes in global aviation, including the closure of Russian airspace to US airlines amid the war in Ukraine, United’s route network in Asia has remained dynamic. In this article, we’ll break down exactly which airports in Asia United currently operates flights to from LAX and SFO.
Additionally, we’ll take a look at how United’s route network to Asia from the West Coast is set to expand and point out which destinations you could be flying to very soon.
From San Francisco to Asia
United Airlines maintained a market share of nearly 45% at the San Francisco Bay Area’s largest airport, flying nearly 14 million passengers last year alone. Unsurprisingly, this traffic is bolstered by the carrier’s prominent transpacific network.
Currently, United serves seven destinations in East and Southeast Asia from San Francisco, including Tokyo-Haneda, Tokyo-Narita, Seoul-Incheon, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taipei, and Shanghai-Pudong. For all these routes, United flies long-haul twin-engine jets like the Boeing 777-200, 777-300, and 787-9.
While the majority of these flights only see a single daily frequency, some do see twice-daily service. A good example of this is Singapore, which receives two daily 787–9 flights. All of United’s Asia-SFO routes traditionally follow an overnight flight schedule, departing in the evening. However, Singapore flights are a flight exception, likely due to their length, leaving at 11:10 and arriving early the next evening at 18:35.
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Notably, United’s offerings from San Francisco will be expanding very soon, with flights to Beijing-Capital (PEK) set to resume on 9 November 2023. A few days earlier, the carrier will also commence service to Manila (MNL) on 29 October 2023. Notably, this is set to be the first direct service by an American carrier from the continental United States to the Philippines.
From Los Angeles to Asia
From LAX, the carrier’s connections to Asia are far more limited. Currently, United only operates flights from America’s second-largest city to Tokyo-Haneda. This once-daily service is operated at the present by a Boeing 787-10.
However, United’s Asian footprint from LAX is set to expand later this year, with flights to Tokyo-Narita set to commence on 28 October and to Hong Kong on the same date. With air travel’s triumphant return post-pandemic and with the rising status of Asia as a global business hub, we will likely continue to see more and more expansion from LAX by United in the coming years.
While the carrier’s Asian network is rather limited from LAX, there are considerable transpacific operations to Australia. Alongside multiple connections to the continent, the carrier will also soon be commencing seasonal service to Auckland alongside the remainder of its new flights to Asia.