Bye, Bye Continental: United Officially Drops Continental Name
United Airlines’ parent company has paid homage to its Continental Airlines roots by including the “Continental” moniker in the United Continental Holdings name used since the carriers merged nearly a decade ago. Not anymore.
The Chicago-based carrier officially changed its name Thursday to “United Airlines Holdings," the company said in a securities filing.
"The name change reflects our desire to move our airline forward," United says in a statement. "The change marks another step on our journey of showing, not just investors but the world, that we’re one team and are singularly focused on becoming the best airline for our employees, customers and everyone we serve."
The name change is limited to the airline’s legal entity that trades on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, and will have no impact on United’s customer-facing branding.
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The United Continental moniker was one of a number of compromises reached when Continental and United came together in 2010. While Continental was the stronger company financially, United was larger and better known globally. The merged carrier kept the latter's name but adopted the Continental branding.
The move was unusual. Neither American Airlines nor Delta Air Lines kept the name of their merger partners in any official capacity after their respective combinations with US Airways and Northwest Airlines.
United updated the Continental brand, which the formerly Houston-based carrier adopted in 1991, in April, dropping gold from the color palette in favor of a blue and gray scheme.
