United Airlines reported a better-than-expected third-quarter performance, indicating a strong recovery from summer fare discounts that had pressured profits. Despite a 15% dip in profit from a year ago, revenue trends improved as low-fare carriers scaled back their growth plans, reducing unproductive capacity in the market. CEO Scott Kirby stated, "As predicted, unproductive capacity left the market in mid-August, and we saw a clear inflection point in our revenue trends that propelled United to exceed Q3 expectations." United's shares surged 14% on the earnings report, rising 12% to over $71, and are on pace for their highest close since February 2020.