United Airlines’ moves in New York reflect the heightened competition in the US transcon market

United's decision to drop its premium transcontinental service from New York JFK to Los Angeles and San Francisco reflects a significant shift in the product proposition in those markets during the last few years, and more broadly, is a reflection of a trend spurred by consolidation of the large US airlines leveraging strength at their largest hubs. In this case, United aims to capitalise its dominance at Newark rather than flight a losing battle at an airport where it has little concentration.

All the airlines in the New York transcontinental market with the exception of Virgin America have overhauled their product offering to cater to the important business passenger base on those routes. JetBlue has arguably been a market disruptor, both through its high quality Mint premium offering and its added capacity on those routes.

The shift is underpinned by a proposed slot swap between United and Delta at JFK and Newark, which is subject to regulatory approval by a government that could view the swap negatively, and insist that other airlines should gain slots to preserve competition.