Five years after United Airlines ditched flights to New York’s JFK in favor of consolidating at Newark Liberty, and three years after a new airline president called the move a mistake, United will start flying from JFK again in February.
The return, made possible in part by slots freed up by other airlines in the wake of the pandemic, will not be a big shift, at least at first. The first flights will be transcontinental hops to Los Angeles and San Francisco, using planes that are heavier-than-most in premium seats, including lie-flats.
Those flights are significant; one major issue for United in the no-JFK era has been that its Star Alliance partners have mainly remained at JFK, making it difficult for connections between United’s domestic network and its partners’ incoming and departing overseas connections. The premium seats are a reflection of heavy business-class demand on the overseas connecting routes.
At JFK, United will return to Terminal 7, which is operated by British Airways; it’s where United was before it left. United will join Alaska as the only domestic airlines at the terminal, and is making arrangements with other operators for lounge access.
