A United Airlines Flight…From Tenerife To Marrakech?!

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A United Airlines Boeing 767-300 flew today from Tenerife, Spain to Marrakech, Morocco. Is United getting even more creative in its route planning or was something else going on?

United Airlines Flies 767-300ER From Tenerife To Marrakech

On October 31, 2024, UA628, United’s new nonstop service from Newark (EWR) to Marrakech (RAK) took off on time from Newark Liberty International Airport. But it did not land in Marrakech…at least not initially. Instead, it circled around the city but then diverted due to fog…to Tenerife South Airport (TFS). The 767-300 jet landed at 10:13 am local time in TFS.

UA628 then continued to Marrakech, a 568-mile journey, departing at 11:55 am and arriving just over 90 minutes later into RAK at 2:29p. How’s that for a first-ever United flight?

My friend Zach Honig of Chase Travel (formerly Editor At Large for TPG) was waiting in Marrakech to fly from RAK-EWR and shared about the delay on Instagram. His flight left about four hours late and will arrive into Newark about three hours behind schedule.

Screenshot/United

Fog can be a thing in Morocco (though more so in Casablanca than Marrakech in my experience) but better safe than sorry, particularly at an airport that is new to United (perhaps the fact that it would likely have been the flight crew’s first time flying into that airport influenced the decision to divert).

Once again, United handled this delay well. Considering the flight made an extra stop on Spain’s Canary Islands, not bad at all…but considering Ryanair flies nonstop from TFS to RAK with fares starting at 10 USD, this is probably not a viable Fifth Freedom route!

top image: FlightRadar24