United Airlines is seizing the moment across the Atlantic, rapidly expanding its European flight capacity and solidifying a lead over American, Delta, Alaska, and Southwest on transatlantic routes. With record-breaking schedules for 2024 and 2025, and a network that stretches deeper into Europe than any other United States carrier, United is not only chasing demand but actively shaping how and where Americans cross the ocean. The result is a new phase of competitive intensity on routes between the United States and Europe, with United at the center of the story and travelers reaping the benefits of more destinations, more frequencies, and more choice.
United Surges Ahead As Transatlantic Capacity Leader
United has firmly positioned itself as the largest United States carrier across the Atlantic by both flight frequency and seat capacity. Industry schedule data for July 2025 shows United operating more than 6,700 transatlantic flights for the month, outpacing Delta’s just over 6,000 and American’s roughly 4,300. In terms of available seat miles, United’s capacity comes in more than six percent higher than Delta’s and nearly forty percent higher than American’s over the same period. For travelers, that means more options on more routes, particularly from key hubs such as Newark, Washington Dulles, Chicago O’Hare, and San Francisco.
This dominance is part of a broader global strategy. In 2024, United flew the largest international schedule of any United States airline by available seat miles, operating nearly 700 international flights per day to 133 destinations in 67 countries. The airline’s 2024 international network was about thirty-five percent larger than its next-largest U.S. competitor, underscoring just how aggressively United has leaned into long-haul and transatlantic flying while some rivals have focused more on domestic markets.
That expansion is continuing into 2025 and 2026. United has signaled that it expects to serve more international destinations across the Atlantic and Pacific combined than all other U.S. carriers, with about 800 daily flights to and from 147 international destinations and nearly 40 routes that no other major U.S. airline serves nonstop. Within that portfolio, Europe remains the crown jewel, and the airline is using its scale to entrench a lead that competitors will find difficult to match quickly.
Record-Breaking Summer Schedules Deepen United’s European Reach
United’s aggressive growth in Europe is perhaps most visible in its summer schedules, when U.S. demand for transatlantic travel hits its peak. For summer 2024, the airline unveiled the largest transatlantic program in its history, with nonstops to 38 cities in Europe, including first-time U.S. connections to destinations such as Faro in Portugal. Many seasonal routes to perennial favorites in Portugal, Italy, France, and Spain were brought back earlier in the year, giving travelers a longer window to visit sunny Mediterranean and Atlantic hotspots.
The growth does not stop there. For summer 2025, United is planning an even larger transatlantic schedule, with more than 760 weekly flights to over 40 destinations in Europe alone. New routes announced for the season include additional connections from Newark to Mediterranean and Iberian cities such as Palermo and Bilbao, along with more capacity to popular leisure destinations in Spain, Italy, France, Greece, and Croatia. Earlier start dates for routes to cities like Venice, Athens, and Barcelona give United a stronger foothold in high-demand leisure markets.
At the same time, the airline is fine tuning its network for 2026. While some routes from Newark to European cities such as Edinburgh, Brussels, and Frankfurt are being reduced to once daily as schedules normalize, United intends to maintain a broader transatlantic footprint than any other U.S. carrier. In practice, this means trimming select frequencies while adding new options elsewhere, such as additional service from Washington Dulles to Reykjavik and other European gateways. The net effect is a network that remains larger and more diverse across Europe than its domestic rivals can currently match.
How United Pulled Ahead Of American, Delta, Alaska, And Southwest
United’s outperformance in Europe is built on a combination of scale, fleet strategy, and hub positioning that its U.S. competitors have been slower or less able to replicate. American, for example, remains a powerful player in transatlantic travel, particularly through its joint venture with British Airways and its strong presence at London Heathrow. Recent data from the U.S. Department of Transportation shows American carrying millions of passengers between the U.S. and Europe annually and operating dozens of routes, but overall its transatlantic capacity still trails both Delta and United.
Delta, for its part, is a formidable contender on transatlantic routes and has been adding capacity, including hundreds of thousands of seats per month and multiple new routes into Italy and other European markets. In July 2025, however, Delta’s transatlantic seat capacity still lags United’s by several percentage points even as it expands. Delta serves fewer European destinations and countries than United, which connects to roughly 33 destinations in 17 European countries, while Delta reaches slightly fewer cities in slightly fewer countries.
Alaska Airlines and Southwest Airlines, meanwhile, play almost no direct role in the transatlantic market. Southwest is focused on domestic and near-international flying within the Americas, and Alaska’s strength lies primarily on the U.S. West Coast and to nearby international markets. Neither airline operates large-scale scheduled services to Europe, which effectively leaves the contest for U.S.-Europe dominance to United, Delta, and American, with United currently out in front on both network breadth and total capacity.
Network Strategy: From Major Hubs To Niche European Cities
One of the defining features of United’s transatlantic strategy has been its willingness to serve both the classic European gateways and an expanding roster of secondary and niche destinations. London, Paris, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, and Rome remain foundational to the carrier’s European schedule, but United has also forged a reputation for being first to market with nonstops to cities that previously required connections on foreign carriers or at intermediate hubs.
In Portugal alone, United has quietly constructed the largest footprint of any United States airline, serving Lisbon year-round and adding seasonal routes to Porto, Ponta Delgada in the Azores, and Faro on the Algarve coast. Faro, in particular, has become a signature example of United’s strategy: the airline launched the first and only nonstop flight between the U.S. and this Portuguese resort region, tapping into strong American demand for beach and golf destinations that feel a bit more under the radar than the traditional big-city European break.
The airline has applied a similar playbook to Spain, Italy, and the broader Mediterranean. Nonstops from Newark to Palma de Mallorca, Dubrovnik, Malaga, and Tenerife have helped United stand out as the only U.S. carrier directly linking these leisure-heavy destinations to North America. Seasonal routes have been timed to capture peak summer demand, and in many cases United has extended operating seasons or increased weekly frequencies based on performance. The 2025 schedule follows that template once again, adding Palermo and Bilbao, and giving travelers a growing list of point-to-point transatlantic options that bypass the traditional European hubs.
Premium Cabins, Product Upgrades, And The Battle For High-Yield Travelers
United’s push to dominate transatlantic capacity is not only about volume; it is also about capturing higher-yield business and premium leisure travelers. The airline has spent the last several years rolling out and refining its Polaris business class product, and it is now preparing for a significant upgrade with the introduction of Polaris Studio suites on new Boeing 787-9 aircraft slated for delivery beginning in late 2025. These aircraft will be heavily skewed toward premium seating, with 99 seats across Polaris Studio, Polaris, and Premium Plus, and fewer overall economy seats than previous configurations.
The new Polaris Studio suites will debut on long-haul routes such as San Francisco to London and later expand across United’s international network. Features such as privacy doors, oversized entertainment screens, upgraded bedding, enhanced dining that includes caviar service, and improved amenity kits are designed to compete head-on with the best long-haul business class products in the world. Such investments are particularly important in the transatlantic market, where corporate travel demand is recovering and high-paying premium-cabin customers can make the difference between a profitable route and one that struggles to justify its costs.
Premium upgrades are not limited to business class. United’s Premium Plus cabin is gaining new touches like wireless charging and larger screens, while economy seats on its remodeled Dreamliners will feature among the largest seatback screens in any long-haul economy cabin. The airline is also rolling out free high-speed Wi-Fi for loyalty program members on many long-haul flights. Together, these enhancements are meant to ensure that United’s hard product keeps pace with, or surpasses, rivals such as Delta’s Delta One Suites and American’s forthcoming premium-heavy aircraft, giving travelers more reasons to choose United when booking a transatlantic trip.
Competitive Responses From American And Delta
United’s rapid scale-up has not gone unnoticed by its closest competitors. Delta is in the midst of its own transatlantic buildout, adding new routes and increasing monthly seat capacity by double digits compared to prior years. The carrier has emphasized strong connectivity through its European partners in Amsterdam and Paris, along with an expanding slate of destinations in Italy and other leisure markets. However, even with these additions, Delta’s transatlantic operation remains slightly smaller than United’s in terms of total flights and seats, putting pressure on Delta to differentiate itself through service quality and reliability rather than pure scale.
American, meanwhile, is reshaping its long-haul strategy around new-generation aircraft and a focus on “long, thin” routes that are better served by smaller, more efficient jets. The airline has begun introducing the Airbus A321XLR on transatlantic flights, using the extended-range single-aisle aircraft to reopen or launch services on routes that cannot support larger widebodies. The first such deployment into Europe, linking New York with Edinburgh, is scheduled to begin in March 2026 and signals American’s intent to reclaim a piece of the niche market that airlines like United and JetBlue have targeted with their own long-range narrowbodies.
Despite these moves, both American and Delta are still working from behind when it comes to sheer transatlantic presence. United’s strategy of simultaneously blanketing major business markets, tapping into leisure hotspots, and entering smaller secondary cities has created a network effect that is difficult to counter. Competitors can and do launch head-to-head routes, but on many European city pairs United remains either the sole U.S. carrier or the first mover with the strongest schedule, giving it a meaningful competitive advantage, especially among frequent travelers and corporate clients who value schedule choice.
What United’s Dominance Means For Travelers
For travelers, United’s surge in European capacity carries several practical implications. The most immediate is the sheer increase in available options: more cities, more nonstops, and, on major trunk routes, more daily frequencies. This breadth makes it easier to build itineraries that minimize connections or awkward layovers, particularly for travelers based in United’s primary hubs. It also opens up entirely new kinds of trips, such as long weekend getaways to smaller European cities that once required multiple connections and an extra day of travel in each direction.
In the medium term, increased capacity can also put downward pressure on fares, especially during the shoulder seasons or on routes where United faces direct competition from Delta, American, or European carriers. While long-haul pricing remains volatile and sensitive to fuel costs and broader economic factors, a market with more seats and more carriers tends to be more price-competitive, giving flexible travelers more opportunities to secure deals.
There is also a qualitative dimension to the experience. As United upgrades cabins and adds premium seating, passengers across all cabins stand to benefit from newer aircraft, better in-flight entertainment, improved connectivity, and a more consistent onboard product. For business travelers and premium leisure customers, the race among United, Delta, and American to offer the best transatlantic experience is driving tangible improvements in seat comfort, privacy, and onboard service. Economy passengers, in turn, are seeing gradual gains in technology and amenities, even if seat pitch and basic layout remain largely unchanged.
The Road Ahead: Consolidating A Transatlantic Lead
Looking forward into the mid-2020s, United appears intent on consolidating its transatlantic lead rather than easing off the throttle. The airline’s order book for new-generation widebodies and its investment in premium-heavy configurations suggest a long-term commitment to international flying, with Europe as one of its central pillars. Although some schedule fine tuning is already evident, with select frequency reductions on a handful of routes for 2026, the broader picture remains one of growth and network diversification.
The key questions now revolve around sustainability and competitive response. If economic conditions soften or corporate travel falters, airlines with large long-haul footprints could face pressure to trim capacity. On the other hand, strong leisure demand and resilient premium traffic could justify retaining or even expanding today’s ambitious schedules. United’s ability to flex routes up or down, switch aircraft types, and lean on its alliances will be critical in navigating whatever comes next.
For now, though, the story is one of a clear transatlantic frontrunner. By combining aggressive network expansion, investment in premium products, and a willingness to serve both mainstream and niche European destinations, United has overtaken American, Delta, Alaska, and Southwest in the race for Europe-bound travelers. As each new season’s schedule is unveiled, the message to passengers is unmistakable: if you are flying between the United States and Europe, United wants to be not just an option, but the default choice.