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United Airlines asks for temporary waiver extension for U.S.-China allocations
September 2nd 2026
United Airlines has asked the U.S. Department of Transportation (DoT) to extend the temporary waiver to retain 42 of the 66 frequencies it holds for flights between the U.S. and Mainland China that it does not intend to use during the northern hemisphere winter scheduling season. Read More » The Star Alliance member said it planned to operate 24 return services a week between China and the U.S. in the six-month period from October 2026 to March next year - daily flights from San Francisco to Beijing Capital and Shanghai Pudong, as well as seven flights a week on Los Angeles-Pudong and three flights a week on Los Angeles-Capital. "United submits that current circumstances continue to warrant an extension of the waiver," the airline said in its submission to the DoT. "This request for a temporary waiver of the dormancy condition for its U.S.–mainland China service is reasonable and comparable to numerous requests that the Department has previously approved." The 42 frequencies for which United is seeking a temporary extension comprise flights from Chicago O’Hare and Newark to Capital and Pudong, San Francisco-Pudong and Washington D.C. (Dulles)-Capital. The United application followed a similar application from Delta Air Lines submitted late last week.
