United Airlines has just announced plans to resume flights to Venezuela, after a nine year hiatus.
United will fly from Houston to Caracas as of August 2026
United will begin operating daily nonstop flights between Houston (IAH) and Caracas (CCS). The service will commence as of August 11, 2026, and will operate with the following schedule:
UA1046 Houston to Caracas departing 11:45PM arriving 5:30AM
UA1045 Caracas to Houston departing 8:00AM arriving 12:30PM
United will use a Boeing 737 MAX 8 for the 2,260-mile flight, which is blocked at 4hr45min to Venezuela, and 5hr30min to the United States. United’s 737 MAX 8s are configured with 166 seats, including 16 first class seats (marketed as business class on international flights) and 150 economy seats.
Here’s how Patrick Quayle, United’s SVP of Global Network Planning and Alliances, describes this:
“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. This flight will help strengthen cultural and economic ties across the Americas and further reinforces United’s Houston hub as a leading gateway to the region.”
Meanwhile here’s what Sean Duffy, the United States Transportation Secretary, had to say:
“United’s first flight to Venezuela in eight years marks another exciting development in the relationship between our two countries. Under President Donald Trump’s leadership, my Department is proud to partner with United to make this historic day a reality. This specific flight will be critical to ferrying oil sector workers into the country as the U.S. and Venezuela work together to expand production and generate new economic opportunities.”
This will be the first time since June 2017 that United flies to Venezuela, because up until that point, the airline served the country for more than 20 years.
It’s not surprising to see United launching this route
United is the second US carrier to return to Venezuela, as American has already resumed service to Caracas, out of Miami. American even plans to offer twice daily flights soon, and will also fly to Maracaibo (MAR).
It’s logical that American was first, given that it’s the strongest US carrier in Latin America, and Miami is also the city with the most demand to and from Venezuela.
That being said, it’s no secret why United is launching this route, and that’s oil, given the industry Houston is known for. As Duffy even outright says, this flight is “critical to ferrying oil sector workers into the country.” So I have to imagine fares will be very high, but the flights might not be consistently full, at least initially.
I am curious, it sounds like United crews will be overnighting in Caracas? Currently American crews do same day turns, while I can’t imagine any way a crew could work this in both directions, especially with the outbound being a redeye. Is the union fully onboard with this, or…?
Bottom line
United Airlines plans to resume service to Venezuela after nine years, with a Houston to Caracas route launching as of August 2026. The flight will operate daily with a Boeing 737 MAX, and is primarily about connecting two oil markets.
I still don’t fully understand what the current reality is in Venezuela and where things stand, so it’ll be interesting to see how this market evolves.
What do you make of United launching Caracas flights?
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