United and Continental to Expand Global Routes

Continental Airlines and United Airlines plan to introduce new international flights later this year, and during the first half of 2012, the merger between the two companies having enabled greater route flexibility from their combined fleets.

Continental plans to begin daily service between Houston’s Bush Intercontinental Airport and Lagos, Nigeria, on Nov. 16, 2011, and a second daily flight between Newark Liberty and Frankfurt, Germany, on Jan. 2, 2012. Continental’s weekly nonstop service between Los Angeles and Durango, Mexico is to launch in March 2012. The airline plans to begin daily nonstop service in May 2012 between Washington Dulles and Manchester, U.K., and in June 2012 between Washington Dulles and Dublin, Ireland. Routes are subject to government approval.

United is to add new daily nonstops between Newark Liberty and Buenos Aires, Argentina, in April 2012.