United Airlines is to introduce eight new destinations to its summer 2025 schedule, including five routes to European airports, in what the US carrier called its “largest international expansion in its history”.

The airline is adding five routes from its hub at Newark Liberty International Airport to Palermo in Sicily, which is launching on 21 May, Bilbao in Spain (31 May), the Portuguese island of Madeira (7 June), Faro (16 May) in southern Portugal, and Nuuk in Greenland (14 June).

United will also start routes from Washington DC’s Dulles International Airport to Dakar in Senegal, as well as new services from Tokyo Narita to both Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia and Kaohsiung in Taiwan.

Other moves for summer 2025 will see United starting flights from Washington Dulles to Venice from 22 May, as well as operating a seasonal summer service from Dulles to Nice in France from 24 May. United already flies from Newark to both of these European destinations.

There will also be earlier starts to several summer routes, including Newark New York to Athens from 6 March, Venice (29 March) and Dubrovnik (1 May). United’s route from Newark to Palma in Majorca will also increase in frequency to four flights per week next summer.

United’s expansion comes after rival Delta Air Lines announced it was launching seven new European routes for summer 2025, while another major US carrier American Airlines is also adding five new routes to Europe next year.