United Airlines Q2 profit rises to $1.32 billion as travel demand offsets the carrier’s rising costs

BY DAVID KOENIG

United Airlines on Wednesday reported that its second-quarter profit rose 23% to $1.32 billion, as record crowds at U.S. airports helped the carrier overcome sharply rising costs for fuel and labor.

However, United warned that third-quarter results will fall short of Wall Street expectations because of a glut of U.S. flights that has airlines cutting prices to fill seats.

Delta Air Lines gave a similarly dim forecast last week. The airlines said, however, that across the industry carriers are trimming their schedules for mid-August and beyond, which should boost their pricing power.

Since the start of the second quarter on April 1, the number of travelers screened at U.S. airports has increased more than 6% over the same period last year, according to figures from the Transportation Security Administration. The nine busiest days in TSA’s history have occurred during that span, although two were after the second