As the Chicago-based airline looks to capitalize on transatlantic traffic during the summer and beyond, its East Coast hub is increasingly taking center stage. 

United is the second biggest player when it comes to passenger air travel between the U.S. and Western Europe. It is responsible for 14% of that total traffic, according to schedule data for the month of April compiled by aviation analytics firm OAG. That’s up 3 percentage points from the same period in 2019 and puts United just below Delta’s 15%.

“They’ve really moved their position,” said Deirdre Fulton, a partner at Midas Aviation and an OAG representative. “They’ve gone from being second-equal to American and British Airlines to having a bigger share—which is being driven by their Newark push.” 

Although United’s largest hubs continue to be Chicago, Denver and Houston, the OAG data shows roughly 35% of its transatlantic operations now run through Newark. Given the airline’s massive presence in the market writ large, that United flights through Newark account for roughly 5% of all passenger air traffic between the U.S. and Europe.

“The main story for me is this is about Heathrow, Frankfurt, the business routes,” Fulton said, noting that United has increased its capacity between Newark and those destinations in recent years.

That’s consistent with United’s increased emphasis on business travel since its chief executive, Scott Kirby, took over in 2020. Instead of trying to compete in the ultra-low-cost markets, the airline is more focused on frequent flyers.

“They’re going to look at premium customers, the business traveler, people who are going to pay a little more for that wider seat,” said Michael Boyd, president of The Boyd Group, an aviation research firm. 

The airline’s presence in and around the financial capital of the world is increasingly important, analysts said. 

“We have the highest number of wide-body flights out of Newark because it’s such a hot-spot destination,” said Anthony Fleet, a spokesman for the airline. “Part of it is our proximity to New York City—and Manhattan especially—but also just the ability to fly to so many different places.” 

The New Jersey hub is not most New Yorkers’ first choice when it comes to flying out of the city. It has been ranked one of the worst U.S. airports for traveler experience.

But United is trying to change that narrative. The airline recently relaunched its “time to travel United out of Newark” advertising campaign, which uses real-time traffic data to compare driving times from Manhattan to the region’s airports.

“We get labeled as a Jersey airport. And yes, we are New Jersey through and through, and we are certainly proud to be in New Jersey,” Fleet said. But the airline doesn’t want New Yorkers to be turned off on the idea of flying out of Newark because of it.

“You can see the New York skyline very clearly from Newark,” he said. “It’s relatively easy to get from Newark to Manhattan. It’s just one of those things where it actually can be more time-effective to get to Newark from New York.”