UAL Corporation (NASDAQ: UAUA), a holding company whose primary subsidiary is United Airlines, announced that they have reached an agreement in principle that will extend the term of their respective agreements with their Mileage Plus co-branded bank card partner, Chase Bank U.S.A., N.A. (Chase), and Paymentech, one of their credit card processors. At the closing of Tuesday’s public trading, the company’s stock rose 68.54%.

To be included in the transaction, United will receive a payment of $600 million from Chase, which relates to the advance purchase of frequent flyer miles and the extension of the contract. The company anticipates that the transaction will enhance cash flow by nearly $200 million within the next few years. Additionally, the level of reserve or holdback that United is required to maintain under their credit card processing agreement with Chase / Paymentech L.L.C. has been reduced to $25 million. As a result, approximately $350 million of previously restricted cash will be released.

The company fully expects an increase in their cash holdings by approximately $1.2 billion, including $1 billion in the short term and an additional $200 million over the next two years. These figures, combined with $550 million that was raised from new transactions in the second and third quarters, will give the company increased total cash balances of $1.7 billion; the company continues to have more than $3 billion in unencumbered hard assets.

UAL Corporation, through their subsidiary, United Air Lines, Inc. offers air transportation services for people, property, and mail in the United States and internationally. They provide these services through jet aircrafts, as well as smaller aircrafts in their regional operations. United Airlines operates more than 3,200 flights a day on United and United Express to more than 200 U.S. domestic and international destinations from their hubs in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Denver, Chicago, and Washington D.C.

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