United Airlines is returning to Venezuela for the first time in nearly nine years, restoring nonstop daily service between Houston and Caracas beginning Aug. 11.
The new route will connect George Bush Intercontinental Airport and Simon BolÃvar International Airport via a Boeing 737 MAX 8. The carrier previously operated flights to Venezuela for more than two decades before suspending service in 2017 amid political instability and security concerns.Â
Strengthening Cultural and Economic Ties
“After nearly a decade, United welcomes the opportunity to resume service between Houston and Venezuela thanks to the leadership and support of the Department of Transportation and the U.S. government,” said Patrick Quayle, Senior Vice President of Global Network Planning and Alliances, United Airlines, in a media statement. “This flight will help strengthen cultural and economic ties across the Americas and further reinforce United’s Houston hub as a leading gateway to the region.”
The announcement comes just weeks after commercial passenger flights between the U.S. and Venezuela resumed following the lifting of a years-long federal restriction on air service. Earlier this spring, American Airlines restarted flights from Miami to Caracas.
United will operate the route daily with the following schedule:
- UA1046 departs Houston at 11:45 p.m. and arrives in Caracas at 5:30 a.m.
- UA1045 departs Caracas at 8:00 a.m. and arrives in Houston at 12:30 p.m.
The resumed Caracas service further adds to United’s growing Latin America network from Houston. The airline currently operates up to 100 daily flights from Houston to more than 50 destinations across Latin America and the Caribbean, with onward connectivity to more than 180 destinations worldwide.
United is also preparing to unveil its new $2 billion Terminal B transformation later this year at its Houston hub, adding 22 new gates and what the airline says will be the largest United Club in its network.
For more information, visit united.com.
