United Airlines announces historic order for up to 200 Boeing 787s

Dergam Mousa

3 years ago

United Airlines announced Tuesday the largest widebody aircraft order ever placed by a U.S. airline: 100 Boeing 787 Dreamliners with an option for 100 more. This historic purchase is the next chapter in United’s ambitious United Next plan and will reinforce the airline’s leadership role in global travel for years to come.

United expects to take delivery of the new aircraft between 2024 and 2032 and will have a choice of 787-8, -9 and -10 models, providing flexibility to cover a wide range of routes.

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About 100 aircraft from this new widebody order are expected to replace aging Boeing 767s and Boeing 777s, and all 767s are expected to be retired from United’s fleet by 2030, resulting in up to a 25% reduction in carbon emissions per seat.

The airline also exercised options to purchase 44 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft for delivery between 2024 and 2026, and ordered an additional 56 MAX aircraft for delivery between 2027 and 2028.

The company expects to take delivery of about 700 new narrowbody and widebody aircraft through the end of 2032, including an average of more than two each week in 2023 and more than three each week in 2024.

“United emerged from the pandemic as the world’s leading global airline and the flag carrier of the United States,” said United CEO Scott Kirby. “This order further solidifies our leadership and creates new opportunities for our customers, employees and shareholders as we accelerate our plan to connect more people to more places around the world and deliver the best experience in the sky.”