United flights to San Francisco and Denver begin March 31

EVERETT — United Airlines will begin offering nonstop flights between Paine Field and its Denver and San Francisco hubs beginning March 31, subject to government approval.

Tickets for United’s six daily flights went on sale Monday. Alaska Airlines announced an 18-flight schedule earlier this month.

“We are excited to offer our Seattle and Northwest Washington-area travelers new opportunities to easily access our hubs in Denver and San Francisco,” said Ankit Gupta, United vice president of domestic network planning, in a written statement.

Like Alaska, United will use 76-seat Embraer 175s. Monday’s announcement by United completes the allotment of 24 daily flights at Paine Field. Alaska is to begin phasing in service on Feb. 11, pending approval by the Federal Aviation Administration.

Said Brett Smith, CEO of Propeller Airport, which has built the private terminal at Paine Field: “United’s new service at Everett will allow customers to get on a United plane in Everett and easily connect to hundreds of destinations around the world while enjoying United’s world class service.”

From Paine Field, Alaska Airlines will serve Portland, Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Jose, Las Vegas, Orange County, Phoenix and San Diego. It increased its daily schedule to 18 flights from 13 after Southwest Airlines dropped plans to offer passenger service here, due to unspecified business considerations.

Southwest’s departure means there will be no service between Everett and Oakland, and no Boeing aircraft will service the new terminal — for now. Southwest flies only 737s.

Propeller has invested $40 million-plus in the development of the new passenger terminal. The 30,000-square-foot terminal on the east side of the airport is nearly ready, but service cannot begin until the FAA approves a recently completed environmental assessment for the Snohomish County-owned airport. The 30-day public comment period closed Nov. 2. The agency will issue a decision ratifying the report’s findings or requiring more security but has not disclosed the timing.

Like Alaska, it appears that United Airlines expects a positive outcome, reflected in its decision to begin selling tickets.

United operates up to 40 daily flights between Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and its U.S. hubs.

From its hub in Denver, United operates nearly 400 flights to 139 destinations in the U.S. and destinations in Asia, Europe, Latin America and Canada.

From San Francisco, United operates nearly 300 daily flights to 40 airports across the U.S., including Chicago, Denver, Houston, New York/Newark and Washington, D.C., and 32 daily nonstop international flights.

Janice Podsada; jpodsada@heraldnet.com; 425-339-3097; Twitter: Janice Pods