News

United to be first airline for Heathrow T2

6 Nov 2013 by GrahamSmith

United Airlines will be the first airline to operate a flight into the new Queen's Terminal at London Heathrow next June.

Flight UA958 from Chicago is scheduled to land at LHR Terminal 2 at 0555, with United Airlines having sole operation in the terminal for two weeks until fellow Star Alliance carrier Air Canada joins it on June 18.

The plan is then for the other Star Alliance carriers to move across in stages.

United Chicago lounge

United's new-style lounge, seen here in Chicago, will soon feature at Heathrow T2

Further details of the lounges at T2 have gradually been released. As previously reported on Business Traveller, Plaza Premium Lounge has already announced plans for a lounge "fit for royalty" (see news, October 7).

Bob Schumacher, United's managing director sales, United Kingdom & Ireland, has now revealed that United will have its own lounge, in addition to Air Canada having a lounge and a new Star Alliance lounge.

He said: "The lounge is being fitted out at the moment at what they are calling T2B, which is the gate where our flights will depart from and which will be linked to T2 by an underground walkway. There will also be a Star Alliance lounge in the main body of the terminal.

"We need our own lounge because next summer we will have 18 flights a day out of Heathrow, up from 16 currently."

The lounge will be in the style of United's new Club lounges, as seen in the two images on this page.

United Chicago lounge

Elegant: The United Airlines Chicago lounge

From London Heathrow, United currently flies to:

  • San Francisco (one flight daily)
  • Los Angeles (one daily)
  • Chicago (three daily)
  • Washington (three daily)
  • New York Newark (five daily)
  • Houston (three daily).

It is expected the increase will come possibly from an additional daily San Francisco flight and an additional Washington flight, though schedules are still being prepared.

The new Terminal 2: The Queen's Terminal will be home to all 23 Star Alliance airlines, as well as Aer Lingus, Virgin Atlantic Little Red and German Wings, serving up to 20 million passengers a year.

An average of 55,000 passengers will arrive and depart from the terminal daily once in full operation. The old Terminal 2 opened in 1955, shut after 54 years of service.

For more on the terminal, click here. For a full list of when each airline will be moving into the terminal, click here.

united.com, heathrow.com

Tom Otley

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