United Airlines passengers won’t have to wait long to see the airline’s sleekest new seats, including its best business class offering yet.
The Chicago-based airline expects to take delivery of its first four Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners with “United Elevated” interiors in the coming weeks, executives said on Wednesday.
These are not just new aircraft.
This will be a new in-flight experience for United — which the airline first launched last spring.
The aircraft will include Polaris Suites equipped with sliding privacy doors, a first for the airline.
In addition, eight of the airline’s new ultra-spacious Polaris Studios are located on the bulkheads of each aircraft.
Read more: Get a first look at United’s new Polaris Economy Class seat
The studios will be United’s most luxurious business-class product yet, featuring the largest entertainment screens on a U.S. airline and premium “soft” product touches, including caviar.
All in all, the aircraft will feature ultra-premium features including:
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- Eight new Polaris studios
- 56 additional standard (but upgraded) Polaris Suites
- 35 Premium Plus recliners
- Main cabin with 123 seats, including 33 Premium Economy seats with extra legroom
The 787-9 aircraft has a total of 99 premium seats, including the latest generation of Premium Plus products located in the middle of the aircraft.
Read more: Prefer Premium Economy? you are not alone. United Airlines wants to give its planes more comfortable recliners
United had hoped to see the new planes, with their luxurious layout, by the end of last year. But that’s not quite happening (delivery days for seats, planes and engines are still common across the aviation industry).
However, it looks like these new planes will be coming soon.
On a conference call Wednesday, United executives said four of the 787-9 aircraft with “elevated” cabins are being prepared for delivery “in the coming weeks.”
The airline has announced it will take delivery of 16 more Dreamliners in 2026, so this “United Elevated” experience will start to become more common on the airline’s most premium long-haul routes.
United claims that the 20 Dreamliners delivered this year will be the most twin-aisle jets a U.S. airline has received in a single year since 1988.
United has trailed only Delta in profits among U.S. airlines in recent years, thanks in large part to the array of premium seats and products it offers customers — something passengers have been craving since the coronavirus pandemic began.
But last year, American Airlines’ new Flagship Suites may be the fanciest new high-end seats on the market (at least among American airlines).
With 2026 just weeks away, United seems ready to make a splash with a new product that is likely to be the hottest new United MileagePlus redemption product in the coming months.
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