Chicago -- United Airlines today announced plans to add 40 weekly flights to Asia and sell its New York-London route to Delta Air Lines.
The move includes reinstatement of United's daily nonstop service between San Francisco and Taipei, beginning next April; the addition of three more weekly flights between San Francisco and Hong Kong, also beginning in April; and the expansion of San Francisco-Seoul service from seasonal to year round, beginning in October.
In addition, United will fly a new route between Washington Dulles International Airport and Tokyo's Narita airport, beginning Oct. 28, replacing the airline's service between Tokyo and New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport.
"As we improve our financial performance, we must make certain that we take full advantage of our network strength and fly routes that provide the best revenue opportunities for United and the greatest benefits to our customers," said John Tague, the company's executive vice president and chief revenue officer.
United emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February and on Monday announced that preliminary results for the second quarter show that the company turned a profit for the first time in some five years.
Atlanta-based Delta is expected to begin daily round-trip service between Kennedy and London's Gatwick Airport later this year, pending regulatory approval.