United Expands in Chicago With 5 Additional Gates and 10 New Routes

United Airlines announced that it has secured 5 additional gates at Chicago O’Hare International Airport, which will enable a route expansion that includes 10 new routes and additional service on existing ones.

“United is already flying its busiest schedule in history at O’Hare, and now these additional gates have unlocked new opportunities to intertwine cities across the country, serve more customers in Chicago, and strengthen our hometown hub,” said Patrick Quayle, senior vice president of Global Network Planning and Alliances.

Here’s what you need to know about United’s latest expansion in the Windy City.

United Expands at O’Hare With New Gates and Routes

The city of Chicago conducts an annual gate reallocation survey at Chicago O’Hare (ORD), based on a use and lease agreement that governs the airport. It dictates that gate reallocation should be based upon a given carrier’s total flying from the airport in the previous year.

United and American Airlines were locked in a contentious battle over their respective gate space at the nation’s fourth-largest airport, according to 2024 passenger numbers. However, United experienced tremendous growth at the airport this year, providing more seats from the airport than it has in the past 20 years and “accounting for a staggering 99% of the airport’s total seat growth this year compared to 2019,” according to a press release.

With all that growth and how the city allocates gates, it means United has won the battle with American, which also operates a hub at the airport. United will gain 5 gates, while American will lose 4.

This new space has enabled United to significantly expand its domestic flying, adding 10 new routes throughout spring and summer 2026.

Here are the details of the new routes from Chicago:

Existing United routes from Chicago will also see capacity increases. The following destinations will move from weekend-only to daily service next summer:

• Aruba (AUA)
• Halifax, Nova Scotia (YHZ)
• Hilton Head, South Carolina (HHH)
• Nassau, Bahamas (NAS)
• Sun Valley, Idaho (SUN)

Additionally, United will increase its seasonal service to West Palm Beach, Florida (PBI) and Dublin (DUB) to year-round and will resume flying to Tel Aviv, Israel (TLV) for the first time since 2023 in November.

Final Thoughts

After emerging victorious in its battle with American Airlines for gate space at Chicago O’Hare, United wasted no time in announcing an expansion from the hub for 2026. These new routes, many of them United exclusives, will give Chicagoland residents even more options for reaching popular destinations quickly and easily.