United US flights from Edinburgh Airport to Washington DC increased in major new deal

Flights to Washington DC from Edinburgh will be increased to run into the winter months under a major new agreement.

United Airlines has announced it is extending its existing summer service to the United States capital from Edinburgh Airport to guarantee flights between the two destinations operate almost year round.

A United Airlines flight departing Edinburgh Airport | United Airlines

Five flights a week will run from Edinburgh to Washington DC from October 26 until January 5 next year under the deal.

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Flights will then be temporarily paused before resuming from February 20. United will then switch to a daily service from March 29 leading into the 2026 summer.

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United said the agreement would increase its seat offer from Edinburgh by almost 10 per cent.

Passengers queue at Edinburgh Airport

The deal is a major fillip for Edinburgh Airport, which already boasts daily year-round United flights from Edinburgh to New York/Newark, as well as a daily seasonal service between Edinburgh and Chicago O’Hare.

Karolien De Hertogh, director sales UK and Ireland at United Airlines, said: “As the only airline connecting Edinburgh to the United States year-round, we are delighted to announce this significant expansion, which further underlines the importance of our Edinburgh services within United’s global network.

“Our customers in Scotland can now benefit from even more time and travel options to visit Washington DC, as well as an unrivalled route network from United’s Washington/Dulles hub, offering convenient nonstop connections to 65 destinations across the Americas.”

The deal has been announced just 48 hours after the bosses at Glasgow Airport announced a “comprehensive transformation” of the west coast terminal as part of a £350 million improvements package .

Work on expanding the airside part of the Glasgow terminal beyond security to add more shops and places to eat and drink is now due to start this year. The west end of the check-in hall will also be expanded, along with the T2 check in area at the east end of the building.

The AGS group, which runs the airport, is hopeful works to enable arriving aircraft to be turned around faster will help attract airlines back that no longer fly from Glasgow.

Edinburgh, which markets itself as “Scotland’s Airport”, handled 15.8 million passengers last year - nearly twice as many as Glasgow.

Gordon Dewar, chief executive of Edinburgh Airport, described the United Airlines deal as “fantastic news”. He said: "Taking this service to almost year-round shows the clear demand for direct connections between Scotland and the USA, and with three routes from Edinburgh Airport, it's also a huge show of confidence in the airport as United's base in Scotland.

"We're really looking forward to seeing United expand its presence during the winter months, and with already strong North American connectivity, we will continue to work on adding even more direct services where possible."

The extension of the Edinburgh to Washington DC route is part of what has been billed as United’s biggest international expansion in the airline’s history.

United is launching five new flights from its hub in New York/Newark to Nuuk in Greenland, Bilbao in Spain, Palermo in Italy, Madeira Island, and Faro in Portugal.

The airline is also adding three new routes from Washington DC/Dulles, including its first-ever flight to Dakar in Senegal, while it will run year-round and new seasonal flights to Nice and Venice, as well as a new seasonal service between Denver and Rome.