Coronavirus flight cuts on the rise: United reduces service to Japan, Singapore, Seoul
United Airlines on Friday became the first U.S. carrier to cut flights to Japan and Singapore amid a sharp drop in demand for Asia flights due to the coronavirus outbreak.
The moves follow previous flight cuts by multiple U.S. and international airlines to China and Hong Kong, including United, which is extending its cancellations by a week to April 30.
United is making a mix of short-term schedule changes, from a suspension of service on some routes to swapping in smaller planes on others, to deal with what it called a 75% drop in demand for Asia flights beyond China in a warning to investors on Monday.
“Asia continues to be an important region for us, and we thank you for your patience and professionalism as we respond to the challenging situation in front of us,” the airline said in a memo to employees Friday. “We’ll continue to monitor the situation and provide you with the most recent information we have to keep you updated.”
United’s moves:
- Canceling flights between its Los Angeles and Houston hubs and Tokyo’s Narita International Airport from March 8-April 24. The airline will still offer flights to Narita from other cities, including San Francisco and Denver.
- Canceling flights between Chicago and Tokyo Narita from March 8-27. Chicago service will switch to Tokyo Haneda on March 28.
- Reducing the number of weekly flights between Newark and Tokyo Narita from seven to five for April.
- Reducing the number of weekly flights between San Francisco and Singapore, Seoul and Osaka, Japan
- Swapping in smaller planes between Honolulu and Tokyo Narita and San Francisco and Taipei, Taiwan.
United said the changes don’t affect its flights between the U.S. and Tokyo’s other airport, Haneda Airport. The airline offers daily flights between San Francisco and Haneda and beginning March 28 will add daily flights from Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and Newark to Haneda.
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