United is permanently ending change fees for most domestic fares, the carrier announced on Sunday.
The new policy, a first among the Big Three U.S. carriers, means passengers will need only to pay the fare differential when changing tickets on flights with the U.S., including to Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It applies to all fares with the exception of Basic Economy.
The broader change fee waiver in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, which also applies to Basic Economy fares and international travel, remains in place through Dec. 31.
In addition to eliminating change fees, United is opening same-day standby lists for earlier flights on the same day for free for all travelers. MileagePlus Premier members also will be able to confirm seats on flights within 24 hours to the same origin and destination for no extra charge—including a fare differential—so long as the seats are in the same ticketed fare class.
In a video message, United CEO Scott Kirby said the move is indicative of how United will approach the Covid-19 recovery, instead of "defaulting to cuts."
"As we emerged from previous tough times, we made difficult decisions to survive financially but sometimes at the expense of customer service either by adding new fees or cutting the things that made the experience of flying better simply because they were too expensive," Kirby said. "United Airlines won't be following that same playbook as we come out of this crisis."