As far as peculiar flights go this one ranks pretty high. This is a service takes a single aisle narrow body United Airlines Boeing 737 across the Pacific Ocean on a single trip. This is the unique route of United flight UA132, why a service of this kind actually exists and who it caters to.
- The Peculiar Route Of United Airlines Flight UA132
- Interesting Fact 1
- Interesting Fact 2
- Why does United Operate Flight UA132?
The Peculiar Route of United Airlines Flight UA132
United flight UA132 originates in Honolulu (HNL) and make the trip down to Guam (GUM). So far nothing out of the ordinary you might thing right? Wrong!
The flight depending on the day of the week on which it operates makes either 4 or 5 stops on its journey from Hawaii to Guam. That brings the total flying time up from the ordinary direct route of 8 hours to a whopping 15 hours.
In its longest version the flight takes off in Honolulu at 07:25 and lands in Guam at 18:25 the next day, while stopping at:
- Majuro (MAJ) in the Marshall Islands with 50 minutes on ground.
- Kwajalein (KWA) in the Marshall Islands with 40 minutes on ground.
- Kosrea (KSA) in Micronesia with 40 minutes on ground.
- Pohnpei (PNI) in Micronesia with 40 minutes on ground.
- Chuuk (TKK) in Micronesia with 45 minutes on ground.
Image by GCMap.com
Day in and day out this flight, UA132, is operated using a Boeing 737-800 with a very standard 2 class configuration:
- 16 Business Class Seats in a 2-2 layout.
- 150 Economy Class Seats in a 3-3 layout.
Once arrived in Guam passengers can then also connect onwards on the United short haul network to destinations in the Pacific region.
However there are at least 2 facts that make this an interesting and very special service. Let’s dive into them.
Interesting Fact 1 About Flight UA132
The flight terminates the day after the date of departure not for its duration, but because it crosses on its path from Honolulu the Marshall Islands the international date line.
Interesting Fact 2 About Flight UA132
United Airlines flight UA132 also serves a military base located on Kwajalein. This is a US army outpost in the Pacific Ocean.
So Why does United Airlines Operate Flight UA132?
There are at least 2 reasons for which United Airlines maintains a peculiar service such as UA132:
- The flight caters to the needs of military personnel moving from the mainland US to the bases in the Pacific Ocean. As a matter of fact this is the primary use of the flights.
- It allows to connect the United States to the capitals and main towns of friendly islands maintaining relations and soft power in the region.
It obviously isn’t a service intended for the common traveller to get from Hawaii to Guam. I wouldn’t advise passing 15 hours on a 737-800 if you can avoid it.
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