On 11 November 2026 United Airlines updated its contract of carriage. A new prohibited practice, rule 6.J.6, bans "the use of AI Agents to make, modify or service a Ticket, and/or to purchase any service or product." Under rule 5.H, United can cancel reservations made, changed or serviced this way, View from the Wing reports.
The definition is wide. An AI agent is "any software or service, including but not limited to an AI assistant, AI agent or AI-enabled browser" that takes autonomous or semi-autonomous action, whether or not a person supervises or approves its actions. It also covers third-party assistants that reach United through a tool or connection provided by a travel agency or other intermediary, and United says it will restrict that access indirectly through agencies and aggregators. United does not name any AI product.
What stays allowed: according to the Wall Street Journal, as cited by View from the Wing, agents can still show United's flights and fares. You can research with an AI and then buy the ticket yourself.
United's reasons: it says sharing account credentials with third-party AI assistants "can expose sensitive information" and that their actions "may result in unintended purchases, account changes, or use of MileagePlus miles", which could also break FAA and DOT rules. CEO Scott Kirby was blunter at an event in Chicago: "To be honest, I don't want to create another middleman."
Doubts: Gary Leff (View from the Wing) argues that "a contractual ban isn't a technical one": a booking an agent completes through Expedia looks like an Expedia booking to United, although United says its systems can identify booking sources. Ben Schlappig (One Mile at a Time) suspects the real aim is to stop AI tools from tracking and repricing fares or comparing airlines, and warns the wording is broad enough to catch award-search tools. United has not said how it will enforce the rule.
