Summary United Airlines is discontinuing Hemispheres, transitioning to digital content instead. Many other US carriers have already ended their inflight magazine publications. Hemispheres generated a lot of revenue for United Airlines.
United Airlines has announced that it will discontinue the publication of its monthly inflight magazine, Hemispheres, with September 2024 being the final printed edition. After more than 30 years, the carrier plans to move Hemispheres' content to a new digital version. For many, Hemispheres set United Airlines apart from its rivals.
However, most other US carriers, including the rest of the US Big 3, had already eliminated hemispheres. Delta Air Lines and Southwest Airlines dropped their inflight magazines during the pandemic, while American Airlines held out until 2021 to end the publication of American Way. Environmental reasons are likely to have played a part in the carrier's decision, with a reduction in paper use and the distribution of printed magazines.
When looking at scale, printed magazines are also heavy, which is why several years ago, United Airlines began printing Hemispheres on a lighter type of paper, saving around 170,000 gallons of fuel per year - equivalent to around $290,000. By going digital, the carrier removes any additional weight and the associated fuel costs, which is a huge benefit both financially and environmentally. Airbus spoke to Simple Flying about hydrogen-powered aircraft, the A380, and its yearly $2 billion .