Continental embarked on an ambitious program to expand its international operations. In 1998 it launched flights to Ireland and Scotland, and in October 1998 the airline received its first Boeing 777 aircraft, allowing non-stop flights from Newark and Houston to Tokyo, Japan and from Newark to Tel Aviv, Israel. Continental in the same year launched partnerships with Northwest Airlines, Copa, Avant Airlines, Transbrasil, and Cape Air, and Continental and America West Airlines became the first two US airlines to launch interline electronic ticketing. On March 1, 2001 Continental launched a non-stop flight from Newark to Hong Kong, flying over the North Pole, which was the first non-stop long-haul flight service for any airline with flying duration of 16 hours. However the September 11, 2001 attacks and the SARS outbreak in Asia caused service to be suspended until August 1, 2003. The launch in 2001 started the battle between Continental, United Airlines and Cathay Pacific over non-stop flights between Hong Kong and New York.  In 2005, Continental expanded service from Newark to Beijing after being awarded the China route. During the same year, five new European destinations including Stockholm in Sweden, Belfast and Bristol in the United Kingdom, and Hamburg and Berlin in Germany. 2005 was a year in which coverage in Asia was also expanded; Continental introduced a nonstop daily flight from Newark to New Delhi, India. With the immense success of this Newark-Delhi route, Continental decided to open a second gateway in India. With the recent announcement of daily nonstop service to Mumbai, Continental will have the most nonstop flights from the United States to India by any carrier. Continental also began new non-stop service to Athens in June of 2007. By May, 2006, Continental passed bankrupt Northwest Airlines to become the fourth-largest U.S. carrier, the first change in the top-five rankings since 2001. The Wall Street Journal revealed on December 12, 2006 that Continental was in merger discussions with United Airlines. Of issue would be Continental's golden share held by Northwest Airlines, dating from a stakeholding relationship during the late 1990s, and the divestiture of Continental's Guamanian hub. A deal was not "certain or imminent," with the talks being in a preliminary state.  In mid-2007, Continental will feature docking capability for Apple Computer's iPod portable music and video player. This will allow the device's battery to be charged, but will also allow integration with Continental's In-flight Entertainment (IFE) system. This will also enable the IFE system to play music, television shows, or movies stored on the iPod, as well as function as a control system. Recognizing operational capacity limits at Newark, Continental has begun utilizing its Cleveland hub as a reliever by developing more international service. In 2008, Continental will begin flying from Cleveland to Paris, and has announced new, seasonal once-weekly flights between Cleveland and Québec City. Additional international routes are expected to follow, pending the completion of a newly-expanded Federal Inspection Services station in Continental's primary concourse in Cleveland.  

Awards

Continental has recently earned other noteworthy recognitions and awards: 

No. 1 Most Admired Global Airline; FORTUNE magazine (2004, 2005, and 2006) 

No. 1 Most Admired U.S. Airline; FORTUNE magazine (2006) 

Best Executive/Business Class; OAG Airline of the Year Awards (2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006)  

Best Airline Based in North America; OAG Airline of the Year Awards (2004, 2005, and 2006) 

Best Trans-Atlantic and Trans-Pacific Business Class among U.S. airlines; Conde Nast Traveler (1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006) 

Best Airline for Travel in North America, Best Flight Attendants in the US, and Best Inflight Service in the US by reader survey in the UK's Business Traveller magazine (December 2006) 

"Airline of the Year" by OAG  

Continental was also named "World's Most Admired Airline." by Yahoo 

Award for Highest- Ranked Network Airline by J.D. Power and Associates 

Destinations

Continental Airlines operates primarily a hub and spoke route network with hubs in Cleveland, Houston, and Newark, and a Micronesian hub in Guam. It operates most of its flights from its hubs, with the exception of some notable routes (most notably Seattle-Anchorage and Los Angeles-Honolulu). Continental Connection also operates flights not involving hubs, such as Florida-Bahamas service and some service in the U.S. Northeast. Continental has served Australia in the past with DC-10 service from Hawaii but eventually withdrew from the Australian market with the exception of less than daily 737 service between Cairns and Guam. Continental also operated a large hub in Denver but closed the hub in 1995 after Stapleton International Airport was closed and replaced with the current Denver International Airport. Briefly during the mid-1990's, Continental operated a hub at Piedmont Triad International Airport, primarily as the base of its short-lived Continental Lite experiment but for other flights as well. The GSO hub was closed by 1995. Continental was initially a domestic airline though it has served Mexican destinations for many years. It entered in transatlantic market in April, 1985 with the introduction of the Houston-London Gatwick flight. Current Bermuda II treaty obligations with the United Kingdom do not allow new entrant airlines to fly into London Heathrow, but the U.S. has awarded Continental route authority to Heathrow. The British have allowed Continental to codeshare with Virgin Atlantic into Heathrow but have not allowed Continental to exercise the route authority to actually fly aircraft into Heathrow that the U.S. have unilaterally granted. However, as of March, 2008, a new Open Skies Agreement with the EU takes effect, effectively invalidating Bermuda II restrictions limiting the number of carriers and cities in the US that can serve Heathrow. As a result, Continental is hoping to gain slots to fly into Heathrow. Continental flies to the most scheduled destinations of any US airline in India, Japan, Mexico, and the United Kingdom, and is the only US airline to fly to the Federated States of Micronesia, Indonesia, Marshall Islands, Norway and Palau. It has the most scheduled international destinations of any U.S.-based airline if some Continental Express destinations to Mexico are included. On July 16, 2007 Continental announced that it had applied with the Department of Transportation for daily direct service between Cleveland and Shanghai via Newark. If approved, the route would begin in 2009 and would be operated with a Boeing 777 aircraft.