United Airlines is expanding in Denver, adding flights and lounges

United Airlines As the airline plans to expand its schedule and add new lounges at Denver International Airport, it expects demand for flights at its fastest-growing hub will continue to grow.

United announced Tuesday that it will add 35 flights at Colorado Airport this year. New non-stop routes include service to Greensboro, North Carolina; Dayton, Ohio; Lexington, Kentucky; and San Juan, Puerto Rico. The airline’s Denver service will average 450 daily departures this summer, a spokeswoman said.

United was the airport largest carrier compared to last year with 46% market share Southwest Airlines‘ 31% share, Frontier Airlines with 10%, Delta Airlines with 5% and American Airlines with 4%, according to airport data.

But the new service comes at a time when changing travel habits during the pandemic are forcing airlines to reassess their networks and figure out where to best deploy scarce planes.

Passenger traffic at the airport increased rapidly during the pandemic as the city grew and travelers sought outdoor destinations amid restrictions aimed at preventing the spread of Covid-19. Last year, Denver Airport handled a record more than 69 million passengers, making it the third-busiest airport in the world, up from 16th in 2019 Airport Council International.

By comparison, San Francisco, another United hub that had a business travel business before the pandemic, served 57.5 million passengers in 2019 and just 42.3 million last year.

United also plans to open a new lounge and reopen one of its two major, revamped clubs – the latest sign that airlines are struggling to make room for plenty of spend-hungry travellers.

Last year, United opened a mini grab-and-go lounge in Denver, catering to travelers connecting to other flights.