In a direct response to Spirit Airlines’ recent announcement on its second Chapter 11 filing in less than a year, United Airlines is planning to expand its winter flights to 15 sunny destinations, including Fort Lauderdale and Orlando in Florida, as well as Las Vegas.
With this schedule expansion, United will offer 45 flights per day to Orlando, 30 to Fort Lauderdale, and 43 to Las Vegas, the airline reported in a Sept. 4 company statement.
“If Spirit suddenly goes out of business, it will be incredibly disruptive, so we’re adding these flights to give their customers other options if they want or need them,” Patrick Quayle, United’s senior vice president of Global Network Planning and Alliances, said in the statement.
The new schedule is set to start on Jan. 6, 2026, and will also include new routes from Newark/New York to Columbia, South Carolina, and Chattanooga, Tennessee. Other new routes will transport more passengers from Houston to Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador.
United also plans to add one daily round-trip flight between Houston and Orlando, Las Vegas, New Orleans, Atlanta, Baltimore, and Miami.
One more daily round-trip flight will be added between Chicago and Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, New Orleans, and Las Vegas, as well as the route between Los Angeles and Las Vegas.
A single weekly flight will also be added between Houston and San Pedro Sula, Honduras.
United also plans to increase flights between Houston, Chicago, and Los Angeles and will operate larger aircraft between Chicago and New York LaGuardia to help consumers outside of United’s hubs connect to these flights.
United’s U.S. hubs are currently located in Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, New York/Newark, San Francisco, and Washington.
Spirit Airlines, meanwhile, plans to continue operations.
“As we move forward, guests can continue to rely on Spirit to provide high-value travel options and connect them with the people and places that matter most,” Spirit President and CEO Dave Davis said in the Aug. 29 statement.
Headquartered in Chicago, United is one of the largest airlines globally, connecting passengers to more than 360 destinations worldwide. The airline currently flies to more than 225 U.S. cities and operates more than 4,000 domestic flights a day, on average.