United Airlines Eliminates Change Fees

Today, United Airlines announced that they’re eliminating change fees on most of their domestic flights, spurred by the challenges presented by the global coronavirus pandemic.

United’s CEO Scott Kirby made the announcement on Sunday via a video released on United’s YouTube Channel. United also says they’ve become the first U.S. airline that will let all customers to fly same-day standby for free.

Per United’s website, the airline has eliminated change fees for “most Economy and premium cabin tickets for travel within the United States. This includes Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.” The policy doesn’t include Guam.

“You may remember that, as we emerged from previous tough times, we made difficult decisions to survive financially, but sometimes at the expense of customer service, either by adding new fees or cutting the things that make the experience of flying better, simply because they were too expensive,” Kirby says. “United Airlines won’t be following that same playbook as we come out of this crisis. Instead, we’re taking a completely different approach, and looking at ways to serve you better instead of defaulting to cuts.”

Details included on the United Airlines website included the following passage:

These days, change is inevitable. But it’s how you deal with that change that matters most, and with that in mind, we’re taking this moment to better support our customers. When it comes to your future travels, you’ll be able to make the most of any change that comes your way, with more flexibility than ever before.