United Airlines partners with one-time foe Emirates, will launch Dubai flights

DULLES, Va. — United Airlines and Emirates volition merchantability seats connected each other's planes, marking a turnaround successful the concern models of the one-time foes.

As portion of the deal, United said it volition commencement flights to Emirates' hub successful Dubai from Newark Liberty International Airport adjacent March.

The codeshare agreement, which the CEOs announced Wednesday, volition springiness the airlines entree to the different carrier's destinations and is the latest illustration of thawing successful the narration betwixt U.S. and Gulf airlines, peculiarly arsenic planetary aerial question rebounds from much than 2 years of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Tim Clark, Emirates' president, said helium hopes the United statement could someday turn into a associated venture, similar the 1 the Dubai-based hose has with Australian bearer Qantas.

"I don't spot wherefore it shouldn't," Clark told reporters astatine an lawsuit unveiling the woody with United astatine a hangar astatine Dulles International Airport, adjacent Washington, D.C.

The partnership, if approved by regulators, volition besides let passengers to gain and pain predominant their flyer miles connected each carrier.

United and different large U.S. carriers similar Delta Air Lines and American Airlines had spent years lobbying against large Persian Gulf airlines' enlargement successful the United States, arguing the state-owned carriers were competing unfairly with backing from authorities subsidies, which those countries denied.

Emirates said past week it is ending its codeshare concern with United rival JetBlue Airways connected Oct. 30. Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi-based Etihad said it volition grow its concern with New York-based JetBlue.

Qatar Airways and American Airlines successful June said they would grow their codeshare partnership.