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_Embraer_ERJ-145XR_N14168_approaching_Newark_Airport.jpg) | |||||||
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| Founded | 1989; 36 years ago (1989) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commenced operations | August 1, 1989; 36 years ago (1989-08-01) | ||||||
| AOC # | JJBA987B[1] | ||||||
| Hubs | |||||||
| Frequent-flyer program | MileagePlus | ||||||
| Alliance | Star Alliance (affiliate) | ||||||
| Fleet size | 75 | ||||||
| Destinations | 75+ | ||||||
| Headquarters | North Olmsted,Ohio | ||||||
| Key people |
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| Employees | 1,235 (2024) | ||||||
| Website | www | ||||||
CommuteAir is aregional airline of the United States founded in 1989. Today, CommuteAir operates more than 1,600 weekly flights, exclusively on behalf ofUnited Express, serving over 75 U.S. destinations and 3 in Mexico. CommuteAir's fleet ofEmbraer ERJ 145 aircraft fly from its bases atWashington–Dulles andHouston–Intercontinental. The company was previously calledCommutAir until July 26, 2022, when it legally changed its name to the present-dayCommuteAir.[2]
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The airline was established in 1989, with headquarters atClinton County Airport inPlattsburgh,New York. Operations began on August 1, 1989, as a marketing affiliate ofUSAir.[3][4]
The airline changed affiliations toContinental Airlines in late 2000, when US Airways and CommuteAir failed to reach a mutually acceptable extension agreement, and CommuteAir decided not to renew thecodeshare agreement. In July 2001, the company announced plans to downsize its fleet and workforce by approximately half and change the route structure of the airline. In early 2002, the company began a "micro-hub" operation based inAlbany, New York. At its high point in 2003 and 2004, the hub served 21 cities within theNortheast and Canada with a fleet ofBeechcraft 1900s. Service was also provided out of Boston'sLogan International Airport to severalNortheast cities.
In January 2003, CommuteAir announced an agreement with Continental to feed the latter'sCleveland, Ohio hub. Service commenced on March 16, 2003, servingKalamazoo, Michigan andElmira, New York. Two cities were added the following month and by August 2003, CommuteAir served 12 cities from the Cleveland hub.
CommuteAir leased sixteenBombardier Q200 aircraft fromHorizon Air in 2006. The following year, the Beech 1900s were phased out.
On October 30, 2007, the company moved all remaining operations fromClinton County Airport, due to the closure of the airport. All operations were then conducted out ofCleveland Hopkins International Airport.[5]
On October 2, 2008, the company began operations out ofNewark Liberty International Airport, followingContinental Airlines plan to adjust to the softening industry.[6]
CommuteAir's pilot group voted for union representation by theAir Line Pilots Association in 2008.[7] That same year, Continental Airlines announced that it would cut flights and more than 3,000 jobs.[8] Subsequently, it was announced that some of CommuteAir's Cleveland flights would be eliminated as part of Continental's cutbacks.[9]
In 2010, following the merger of United and Continental, CommuteAir became a United Express carrier andUnited Airlines asked CommuteAir to obtain fiveBombardier Q300s. Two of the aircraft were allocated to Cleveland services and three aircraft were allocated to Newark services.
In 2012, CommuteAir opened a hub atWashington-Dulles International Airport.
In July 2014, CommuteAir closed its pilot base atCleveland Hopkins International Airport, after United Airlines withdrew its Cleveland hub.[10] CommuteAir also closed its Clevelandmaintenance base, and replaced it with a new maintenance base in Albany, New York.[11]
On November 9, 2015, CommuteAir announced that it has reached an agreement with United Airlines to significantly increase the number of airplanes flown under the United Express brand by adding Embraer ERJ 145 jet operations to the company's existing fleet of Bombardier turbo-prop aircraft.
In July 2016, CommuteAir began commercial service with its inaugural flight on the ERJ 145 jet from Washington, D.C. to Columbia, SC.[12]
In September 2017, the Q300 was phased out and in January 2018, the Q200 was phased out, marking the end of turbo-prop operations.
On July 30, 2020, it was announced thatUnited Airlines had decided to end its contract with fellowUnited Express affiliateExpressJet and transferred these operations to CommuteAir. CommuteAir became the sole operator of the United Express ERJ 145 fleet.[13]
On September 30, 2020, CommuteAir started servicing United's Houston hub and on March 28, 2021, it began service out ofDenver International Airport. The latter marks the return of the ERJ 145 to the DenverUnited Express fleet since COVID and the cessation of operations byTrans States Airlines.[14] CommuteAir operated its final flights from Denver in May 2024 before closing its pilot and flight attendant bases and consolidating its operations in Houston and Washington-Dulles.
On January 19, 2023, hackermaia arson crimew announced she had compromised web servers belonging to CommuteAir and obtained access to flight and personnel scheduling systems, thepersonal data of airline staff, and a 2019 copy of theUS Government No Fly List.[15][16]
On May 19, 2025, CommuteAir announced closure of its Lincoln Airport (LNK) base. All operations at LNK cease on July 18, 2025.
 | This section needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(January 2024) |
As of August 2025[update], CommuteAir operates the following aircraft:[18]
| Aircraft | Active | Orders | Passengers | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Embraer ERJ 145 | 74 | — | 50 | United Express | ||
| Embraer 170 | 1 | — | 76 | CommuteAir[19] | ||
| Total | 75 | — | — | |||
As of January 2020, CommuteAir average fleet age was 15.2 years old.[citation needed]
The CommuteAir fleet was once composed entirely ofBeechcraft 1900 aircraft, operated forUS Airways Express and later forContinental Connection.
CommuteAir operated the final turboprop flight forUnited Express on Sunday, January 7, 2018.[20]
This flight, UCA4909/C54909 betweenSyracuse Airport andDulles Airport was operated by tail number N363PH.[21][22] It marked the end of an era for both CommuteAir andUnited Express. TheBombardier DHC-8-200 was subsequently ferried toRoswell International Air Center for retirement.[23][24]
On January 3, 1992,CommutAir Flight 4821, aBeechcraft 1900C operating forUSAir Express was flying fromPlattsburgh, New York toNewark, New Jersey, with stops inSaranac Lake andAlbany in New York, crashed into a wooded mountaintop as it was landing atAdirondack Regional Airport.[25] Of the four people on board (two passengers and two crew), two were killed while the other two sustained serious injuries.[26]
The cause of the crash was determined to be pilot error in establishing a stabilized approach and cross-checking instruments. Factors related to the accident were: weather conditions and possible precipitation static interference, caused by inadequate grounding between the radome and fuselage that could have resulted in unreliable glide slope indications."[26]
On March 4, 2019,CommutAir Flight 4933, operating forUnited Express, landed off the runway during its second attempt at landing inPresque Isle International Airport.[27] The left main landing gear was torn from the aircraft and embedded in one of the two rear engines. The accident resulted in a loss of the airframe. Passengers and crew were evacuated, with three passengers and one crew member requiring treatment for minor injuries.[28]
TheNational Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) attributed the accident toconfirmation bias which prompted the pilots to continue descending even though they could not see the runway due to snow. Contributing factors were poor decision-making by thecaptain, fatigue of thefirst officer, and misalignment of thelocalizer caused by snow. The NTSB criticized the airline's training practices, as the captain had been promoted to that status despite a history of training failures and disciplinary action. The NTSB also noted that at least six CommutAir flight crews had noticed the localizer misalignment prior to the accident but none had reported it under the airline's safety program until after the event; one CommuteAir crew had reported the problem to theFederal Aviation Administration beforehand, but the agency did not issue aNOTAM because protocol dictated that more than one report was required.[29]
