United Airlines has filed an application with the U.S. Department of Transportation for nonstop flights between Houston's Bush Intercontinental Airport and Tokyo's Haneda Airport. The new service would make United the first U.S. airline to fly nonstop between Houston and Tokyo, and would be a welcome addition for the region.
The rapidly growing Houston area is home to 240 Japanese-affiliated companies, and Japanese-owned companies employ more than 70,000 workers in Texas. Nonstop flights from Houston to Tokyo would greatly expand the options for business travelers in the region as well as leisure travelers in 64 communities across the Southern U.S.
United is already the world’s most comprehensive route network of any U.S. airline. It has worked to develop a Japanese network to promote competition and provide affordable and consistent service options. The airline’s current Tokyo service includes multiple flights to Haneda and Narita from all seven U.S. hubs, but Houston has just one flight to Haneda, operated by a foreign carrier. In comparison, New York/Newark has five, Los Angeles has seven, Chicago has three, and Washington, D.C. and Dallas/Fort Worth each have two.
"Between its steadily growing population and its booming energy and innovation sectors, the Houston area has transformed into a critical hub for both business and leisure travel," said Patrick Quayle, Senior Vice President, Global Network Planning and Alliances at United Airlines. "If awarded by the DOT, this new service will enhance travel options to Tokyo Haneda for consumers across the Southern United States, and strengthen the economic partnership between Japan and more than 240 affiliated businesses in the greater Houston area."
The proposed flight service to Tokyo would run daily from Houston.