United will introduce its new Boeing 737 Max 9 on domestic routes from Houston Intercontinental and Los Angeles International airports in June. The aircraft will enter service from the Chicago-based carrier's Houston hub to Anchorage, Austin, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando and San Diego on 7 June. Service will expand to Los Angeles, Sacramento and Tampa on 29 June. United will also introduce the 737-9 on flights between its Los Angeles hub and Honolulu on 29 June. "The addition of the Max 9 furthers our efforts to become a more efficient and productive airline," said CFO Andrew Levy. "It has better fuel efficiency, lower maintenance costs and does all of this while maximising customer comfort." The airline will configure its 737-9s with 179 seats, the same density as its 737-900ERs. United will take delivery of 10 737-9s in 2018, with its first six due in April and May, a securities filing earlier in February shows. United will be the first US operator of the Max 9. However, American Airlines and Southwest both introduced the Max 8 in 2017.<br/>
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Air New Zealand warned Monday flights in and out of New Zealand faced major disruptions this week due to Cyclone Gita, set to hit the country on Tuesday, and encouraged passengers to defer travelling. “We are anticipating significant disruption to our domestic network as well as some international services over the coming week,” the airline said in a travel alert on its web site. Air New Zealand said it would not reimburse passengers for any costs or penalties like hotels and meals if flight schedules were disrupted. “Any customer who chooses to commence their journey as planned must be advised that they do so at their own risk,” the airline said. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the government was keeping a close eye on the cyclone and urged people to take local civil defense warnings seriously. New Zealand’s MetService issued severe weather warnings for most of the country’s South Island, expected to be hit by heavy rain and gale-force winds, while it said western areas of the North Island will face strong northerly winds.<br/>