Chicago-basedUnited Airlines (UA) has filed a request with the Department of Transportation (DOT) to establish a new international flight route connecting Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and Beijing Capital Int’l Airport (PEK), China.
The proposed route would introduce three weekly flights starting May 1, 2025, reported Ben Schlappig on OMAAT.
United plans to utilize a Boeing 787-9 aircraft for this 10,058 Km (6,250 miles) route. The aircraft configuration includes 257 total seats: 48 business class, 21 premium economy, and 188 economy seats.
Earlier, as per some reports, United Airlines also deployed Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner for Beijing Flights.
Here’s the Flight Schedule:
- The United flight will depart from Los Angeles at 11:10 PM and arrive in Beijing at 4:45 AM two days later.
- The Return flight will depart Beijing at 12:00 PM, landing in Los Angeles at 9:35 AM.
Remember, the route will operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays westbound, and Thursdays, Saturdays, and Mondays eastbound.
Currently, United maintains a single Beijing route from San Francisco (SFO) with 777-300ER, with Air China (CA) being the only other carrier offering nonstop service between Los Angeles and Beijing.
The United States and China currently maintain a bilateral agreement that caps combined weekly flights between the countries.
They are permitted 50 weekly frequencies, with current U.S. carriers operating well below this limit.
Before the Pandemic, the US and Chinese carriers used to operate more than 300 weekly flights across multiple cities distanced by the Pacific. This was four times higher than the flights served in 2024, as per the Cirium Diio Data.
Post-pandemic air travel between the United States and China remains significantly reduced. Despite increasing flight caps, U.S. airlines have been hesitant to maximize available frequencies.
United already operates extensive long-haul international routes from Los Angeles, including destinations like Hong Kong, London, Melbourne, Shanghai, Sydney, and Tokyo. The proposed Beijing route would further solidify the airline’s international network from the key West Coast hub.
American Airlines currently serves London, Sydney, Tokyo, and seasonal Auckland from Los Angeles. Delta offers year-round routes to Paris, Sydney, Tokyo, and seasonal destinations including Auckland, Brisbane, and Tahiti, with plans to resume Shanghai flights in June 2025.
The low current flight frequency suggests a high probability of this new route approval.
In a separate development last month, United Airlines planned to deploy Boeing 777-300ER aircraft on three strategic international routes from Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) in spring 2024.
Starting March 29, United will introduce the Boeing 777-300ER on Newark to Dubai and Newark to Frankfurt routes. The expansion continues on May 22 with the deployment of 777 on the Newark-Rome service, as confirmed by route analyst Ishrion Aviation.
United currently operates 96 Boeing 777 variants, including 22 Boeing 777-300ER aircraft. The route expansion suggests potential fleet reconfiguration or recent aircraft acquisitions to support these new international destinations.
