United Airlines Suspends Several Newark & D.C. Routes This June

Due to an aircraft shortage issue, United Airlines has announced that it will be suspending several routes, both domestic and long-haul, for the month of June.

Why the Suspensions

Generally, across the airline industry, there is a shortage of widebody aircraft thanks to supply chain issues, however, United’s dilemma actually stems from an entirely different problem. A little over a year ago, a Boeing 777 plane was forced to make an emergency landing in Denver after one of the engines fell apart mid-air. Following this episode, the entire 777-200 and 777-300ER fleet for United was grounded for safety inspections.

These aircraft will soon be returning to service after a year-long hiatus, however, they won’t be ready as soon as United would like them to be, forcing the airline to suspend several routes this June.

Route Suspensions

• Newark (EWR) and Maui (OGG)
• Newark (EWR) and Honolulu (HNL)
• Washington-Dulles (IAD) and São Paulo (GRU)
• Washington-Dulles (IAD) and Geneva (GVA)
• Washington-Dulles (IAD)  and Honolulu (HNL)
• Washington-Dulles and Dublin (DUB)

Each of these routes is set to return with the July schedule, though no doubt it will be a headache for passengers on these services to re-book.

Alternatives

For passengers headed to Hawaii, United offers several daily departures from Houston (IAH), San Francisco (SFO), and Los Angeles (LAX), so you should be able to travel from Newark or Washington, D.C. to one of those connecting cities and down from there.

If you’re flying to Geneva, United offers a daily nonstop from Newark, so you’d simply need to connect in Newark vs. Washington, D.C.

Headed to São Paulo? No problem, as there’s still a daily flight from Houston that will take you there.

Dublin flyers can route via Chicago (ORD) or Newark.

For all cities, you can either rebook using the United app, over the phone, or through United’s new virtual assistance options. Regardless of whether you’re booked on a cash fare or award miles, United should protect you on another flight to your final destination, though demand this summer is incredibly strong, so you’ll want to move your flights sooner rather than later.

Hot Tip: Learn more about how to cancel or change a United Airlines flight (points or cash ticket) in our detailed guide.

Suspending Stockholm

In addition to the routes above, United is also suspending daily nonstop service to Stockholm (ARN), though this route change is for the entire remainder of the schedule, through April of 2023.

Final Thoughts

Most of these route suspensions are temporary and assuming the missing aircraft come back into service on time, these flights should recommence in July. If you’re booked on any of these suspended flights, contact United to see what alternatives are available.