United and American battle for more gates at Chicago O'Hare Airport

Chicago O'Hare's two largest carriers, American Airlines and United Airlines, are locked in a tense battle over the number of gates they're allotted.

According to airport policy, the busier an airline is the more gate space it's given. Last summer, United was awarded five more gates at O'Hare, bringing their total number of gates to 97.

American, which lost gates when last years reallocation was complete, purchased two from Spirit Airlines when they declared bankruptcy, giving them 65 total gates. But they want more, and as part of that effort they have now launched non-stop flight service from O'Hare to Maui. American said since Feb. 2025, they have added 32 new destinations to their service from O'Hare.

But Crain's Chicago Business reports that United's CEO said he's prepared to add flights an absorb the cost to stop American from expanding their O'Hare presence.

American fought back, saying it plans to increase flights at O'Hare by 21%, which would allow it to gain back some of the gates it lost last year.