United Airlines (UA, Chicago O'Hare) has urged the US Department of Transportation (DOT) to include Hong Kong International-based carriers in a tentative decision banning Chinese airlines from utilising Russian airspace in their scheduled passenger flights to the United States.

“Allowing different treatment for Hong Kong, where competitive circumstances are the same as China, would undermine the success of the framework the Department continues to manage to ensure fairness in US-China routes,” United said in a filing to the DOT.

The DOT filed a proposed order on October 9, which, if issued as a final order, would force Air China, Capital Airlines, China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines, Hainan Airlines, Sichuan Airlines, and Xiamen Airlines to avoid Russian airspace while flying to the United States. The regulator said this was to level the playing field, as US carriers have been banned from using the quickest routes to China via Russia since May 17, 2022.

In the Hong Kong-US market, Hong Kong carriers hold an approximately 75% seat share, with Cathay Pacific operating an average of 12 daily flights to the United States, United said, adding that allowing these companies to keep flying over Russia while Chinese airlines are prohibited from doing so would keep a loophole open.

In particular, the carrier is worried about three eastern US destinations Cathay serves, Boston, Dallas/Fort Worth, and Chicago O'Hare, which United cannot do “because it cannot cross Russian airspace and is forced to compete with four daily flights between only two US West Coast hubs (Los Angeles International and San Francisco) and Hong Kong,” it added.

According to ch-aviation schedule data, Cathay Pacific is the only Hong Kong-based carrier operating scheduled passenger flights to the United States.

Cathay Pacific was not immediately available for comment.