United Airlines announces South Pacific network expansion

United Airlines announced the largest South Pacific network expansion ever to and from the continental United States, including the first non-stop flight between San Francisco and Christchurch.

United’s first non-stop flight between San Francisco and Christchurch debuts on December 1, with the three-times-weekly service taking place on a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner. The carrier is also adding four weekly flights from Los Angeles to Auckland, starting October 28.

The airline is adding three weekly flights between Los Angles and Brisbane on a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, starting on November 29, and daily flights between San Francisco and Brisbane, beginning on October 28.

United will fly twice daily between San Francisco and Sydney on Boeing 777-300ERs, starting October 28. On the same day, the carrier will also deploy its largest airplane on flights between San Francisco and Melbourne, adding nearly 100 daily seats to each departure.

“This past winter, United enhanced our network and became the largest carrier to the South Pacific region,” Senior Vice President Patrick Quayle said. “Now, this upcoming winter, we will expand even further.”

“Our strong partnerships with Air New Zealand and Virgin Australia provide unparalleled connectivity, and with our historic expansion across five destinations in New Zealand and Australia, United is the clear choice for customers’ travel to the region,” Quayle continued.

The carrier already offers service to more destinations in Australia and New Zealand than all other American airlines combined, and will now fly to more destinations in the region from the U.S. than any other carrier in the world.

With 66 flights between the U.S., Australia, and New Zealand every week, the airline will operate nearly 40 percent more flights between the destinations in 2023 than last year.

Tickets for the new flights are now on sale through United’s official website.