United to drop service to Fukuoka, leaving Japanese city unserved by Big 3 carriers
United Airlines will have one less pin on its route map later this year.
The Chicago-based carrier filed plans over the weekend to drop service to Fukuoka, Japan, effective Oct. 26, as first seen in Cirium schedules and later confirmed by a carrier spokesperson. United currently offers daily flights from its Micronesia hub at Guam's Antonio B. Won Pat International Airport (GUM) to Fukuoka Airport (FUK).
This 1,651-mile route has historically been served by a Boeing 737-800. United inherited this route from Continental Airlines during the merger. Continental used to have a wholly owned Continental Micronesia subsidiary that was folded into the larger United operation following the combination of the two carriers.
United inherited the Guam hub during the merger, and it continues to offer unique services to destinations throughout the region. Most notably, travelers may have heard of the island hopper route, which connects Guam and Honolulu via several small islands in Micronesia and the Marshall Islands. This route is a lifeline for many of these tiny islands that otherwise don't have any scheduled airline service.
United didn't have much to share about the Fukuoka cut beyond the following boilerplate statement:
"We regularly evaluate our Guam schedule and make adjustments based on demand and the broader needs of our network – our Fukuoka, Japan-Guam service is suspended effective October 26 and we are working to reaccommodate impacted customers. United will continue to fly from Guam to Osaka, Nagoya, Tokyo-Narita and Tokyo-Haneda."
United's service to Fukuoka was among the last remaining nonstops from U.S. soil to the sixth-largest Japanese city. Hawaiian Airlines will continue to fly between Honolulu and Fukuoka on a three times weekly basis. Delta Air Lines ended its Honolulu-to-Fukuoka route in 2019, and now United is exiting this market.
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Fukuoka is known for its rich culture and history, culinary scene and natural landscapes, and its beaches are popular with locals and tourists.
The timing of United's cut is interesting. On Oct. 27 — one day after this cut — United will add service from Tokyo's Narita International Airport (NRT) to Mactan-Cebu International Airport (CEB) in the Philippines. This route will be operated by a Boeing 737-800 that flies from Guam to Tokyo to Cebu and back.
It's entirely possible that the airline will use the aircraft originally assigned to its Fukuoka route for the new Cebu flight, but the airline didn't have any further comment to share.
Going forward, Guam-based travelers heading to Fukuoka will need to connect at a different Japanese gateway. United will offer plenty of one-stop services in partnership with Japanese Star Alliance partner All Nippon Airways.
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