Bob Schumacher, United Airlines’ Managing Director Sales, United Kingdom & Ireland, spoke to the Birmingham Business Post about United Airlines’ ongoing commitment to Birmingham Airport.
Bob was keen to stress the importance to United of the 20 year relationship that the airline has established with Birmingham, saying "United is proud to have served Birmingham Airport for almost two decades, and we thank all of our customers who have chosen to fly with us during this time.”
Operating non-stop flights from Birmingham Airport since 15th July 1997, United Airlines provides direct access to New York/Newark, with onward connections to over 300 destinations throughout North, Central and South America and the Caribbean. Over 2 million passengers have flown between Birmingham and Newark (New York).
Bob said how great it was to work with an airport that was just as committed to customer satisfaction as United. He said Birmingham is “engaged” and keen to work cooperatively, whereas the key to United’s success is that people like them, so this airline and this airport form a great team.
Bob explained to us that it is all about utility and that Birmingham is a great airport for passengers, being easy to navigate, with great transport links, and based in the UK’s second city. Saying too how the convenience of Birmingham helps to put the region “on the map” for US travellers, exporters and business people.
The relationship between the West Midlands and the US is both strong and well established, in surveys conducted by Midlands Connect in 2015, 71 percent of Midlands businesses with international customers said that Birmingham Airport is their most important airport.
Birmingham, with its many regular flights to New York, is the best airport for connectivity in the US, as Bob Schumacher said, “Our non-stop service offers customers in the Midlands access not only to New York City but also to hundreds of other destinations throughout the Americas via United’s Newark Liberty hub.” The company are finding that approximately half their passengers are going to New York, whereas the rest are onward bound.
The great connectivity between Birmingham and the US has seen the US retaking the top spot from China as the number one destination for West Midlands exported goods. In 2015 the West Midlands exported £5.4bn of goods to the US, 30 per cent growth on the year before.
It hasn’t been all one way either, the West Midlands has also seen a 188 per cent increase in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) projects since 2011/12, with 81 new FDI projects in 2015/16, creating and safeguarding over 5,000 jobs. US firms have been the single most prominent investors, accounting for 32 per cent of all projects.
William Pearson, Aviation Director for Birmingham Airport, agreed on the importance of Birmingham Airport’s longstanding relationship with United to the region, saying, “United Airlines serves vital transatlantic connections for the region's business and leisure communities and has shown unwavering commitment to Birmingham over the last twenty years. Providing non-stop flights to New York gives customers a reliable service and flexibility with a Star Alliance airline, boosting our economy by plugging the Midlands Engine into global opportunities.”
This well-loved airline is always looking to see how it can improve its service and has recently rolled out the “New Spirit of United.” This special aircraft is also the company’s first Boeing 777-300ER featuring the United Polaris all-aisle access, lie-flat seat. It represents a commitment to the future and the commencement of an exciting new chapter for the company as it continues to build the best airline in the world.
“This aircraft symbolizes the new spirit, the energy and enthusiasm that I have seen in our employees who take great pride in the work they are doing to take care of our customers and one another,” said Oscar Munoz, chief executive officer of United Airlines. “The new 777-300ER fleet will play a crucial role in connecting our customers to far-away destinations and to the moments that matter most.”
Other developments include the company’s eco-initiatives; United Airlines was recently recognised by Air Transport World (ATW) magazine as Eco-Airline of the Year. The magazine awarded United with the top honour for multiple initiatives in 2016 and prior years, including becoming the first U.S. airline to begin using commercial-scale volumes of sustainable aviation biofuel for regularly scheduled flight.
We asked Bob how he saw the future of United’s relationship with Birmingham. He said, “We want our customers to know that we are in this market and we will continue to be in this market! Birmingham is the main conduit between the Midlands and the US.”