United Air Lines, Inc., is an American airline, one of the world's largest airlines with 86,852 employees and operating the second-largest fleet with 702 aircraft. It is a subsidiary of United Continental Holdings, Inc. formerly, UAL Corporation, with corporate headquarters in Chicago. United's largest hub is George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston. United is a founding member of the Star Alliance, the largest airline alliance in the world, and offers connections to over 1,000 destinations in over 170 countries worldwide. The airline's regional service is United Express. United... Airlines originated from the Varney Air Lines air mail service of Walter Varney, who also founded Varney Speed Lines which later became Continental Airlines. Founded in Boise, Idaho in 1926, the carrier flew the first Contract Air Mail flight in the U.S. on April 5, 1926, marking the first scheduled airline service in the country's history. In 1927, airplane pioneer William Boeing founded his own airline, Boeing Air Transport, and began buying other airmail carriers including Varney Airlines.
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