United adds two Florida routes from San Francisco hub

United Airlines will add two Florida routes to the schedule at its San Francisco hub.

Nonstop service to Miami begins Dec. 16 while Tampa flights start Feb. 16. United will use Boeing 737 aircraft to fly one daily round-trip flight on both of the routes.

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The San Francisco-Miami route restores service that United dropped in October 2004, according to the aptly named Airline Route blog.

The Tampa Bay Times notes the Tampa service “comes months after (Tampa) airport officials launched a social media campaign that encouraged residents to tweet and share personal stories in a Facebook group with the hashtag #TPA2SF.” Tampa airport officials say the Tampa-San Francisco market had been one of the nation’s busiest not to be served by a nonstop flight.

The Florida routes also come amid a broader effort by United to strengthen its hub at San Francisco, which functions as the carrier's main West Coast hub and top gateway to Asia.

Earlier this month, United become the first U.S. carrier to fly to the Chinese city of Hangzhou, a route United flies from San Francisco. The San Francisco Chronicle notes that was "the latest in a string of five international routes that United has added since March at San Francisco International Airport, where the number of overseas passengers is rising quickly. Last year the airline did not add any new international flights from San Francisco."

Another high-profile route added at San Francisco by United was its new service to Singapore. That route is now the longest flown by any U.S. airline.

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United now flying longest route of any U.S. airline

PHOTOS: United Airlines launches San Francisco-Singapore nonstops