Overview
- United will serve 222 nonstop destinations from Chicago in 2026, including 175 domestic and 47 international cities, which it says is 38 more than its next largest competitor.
- Tickets for five new regional routes to Champaign–Urbana, Kalamazoo, Lansing, La Crosse, and Bloomington–Normal go on sale January 29, with service starting April 30 or May 7 depending on the market.
- More than 80 additional cities will receive extra frequencies from Chicago, including Boston, Nashville, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Dallas–Fort Worth.
- American Airlines is also scaling up at O'Hare, targeting more than 500 peak daily departures and adding routes such as Chicago–Maui/Kahului, Allentown and Columbia.
- United executives frame the move as strengthening its Chicago hub, and Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker praised the expansion's expected economic and tourism benefits.