United Airlines expands global reach with new Cebu-Tokyo route

MANILA, Philippines — United Airlines, one of the largest carriers in the world, is launching non-stop flights from Cebu to Tokyo in July, marking another first for the operator shaking up the local aviation landscape.

United Airlines will operate daily flights between Cebu and Tokyo starting July 31, expanding its Philippine network for the second time in less than a year.

On top of this, the airline will open new connections between New York and Marrakesh, Morocco on Oct. 24 and between Houston and Medellin, Colombia on Oct. 27.

“This year, United will be the only US airline to offer non-stop flights to Marrakesh, Morocco and to Cebu, Philippines. And for the first time ever, United will fly non-stop to Medellin, Colombia,” United Airlines said.

The airline also decided to add four weekly flights between Los Angeles and Shanghai. Once all of these expansion plans are realized, United Airlines said its Atlantic and Pacific network would be wider than all of its competitors combined.

“Not to flex, but we have more flights and destinations across the Atlantic and Pacific than all of the other US airlines combined, and we are not done yet,” United Airlines said.

Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) confirmed that United Airlines will become the first US carrier to operate flights to and from Cebu.

MCIA said the route opens up an opportunity for travelers from Cebu to reach the United States by way of Tokyo without changing airlines.

Recently, United Airlines has shown interest in expanding its Philippine operations as part of its goal to grow in Asia and the Pacific.

United Airlines began its daily trips between Manila and San Francisco in October 2023, making it the only American carrier to fly between the Philippines and the US.

Prior to this, flag carrier Philippine Airlines operated the lone direct connection between Manila and San Francisco.

United Airlines wants to grow its Philippine footprint to serve the resurgent demand for air travel and the recovering visitor arrivals from the US.

In 2023, the Philippines welcomed a total of 5.45 million tourists from abroad, and 17 percent of them came from the US as the market is picking up pace in the pandemic aftermath.