Quite frankly, I’m really confused how this is only happening now, as this seems like the obvious choice…
United Airlines focuses on larger Dreamliner variant
United Airlines currently has an all-Boeing wide body fleet, including 767s, 777s, and 787s. The 767s and 777s will be retired eventually — 767s will likely leave the fleet before the 777s, which will definitely be around for a decade plus. But when it comes to fleet renewal, the airline is entirely reliant on 787s.
United flies all three variants of the 787 Dreamliner, and currently has 80 of them. As it stands, the Star Alliance carrier has 12 787-8s, 47 787-9s, and 21 787-10s. United has 141 787s on order, and up until now, they’ve all been for the 787-9 variant.
I’ve found that to be really odd — while the 787-9 is the best of those planes for ultra long haul economics, the 787-10 has amazing unit costs, and can cover United’s entire network to Europe and South America, and even many parts of North Asia.
That brings us to the latest update, as reported by The Air Current. United has just converted 56 of its 787-9 orders into 787-10s, and those deliveries are supposed to start as of 2028. With that update:
- United now has 85 787-9s on order, which means the airline will eventually have 132 of these in its fleet, including the 47 existing planes
- United now has 56 787-10s on order, which means the airline will eventually have 77 of these in its fleet, including the 21 existing planes
Will there be more to United’s long haul fleet renewal?
The 787-9 is an incredible aircraft for United’s ultra long haul network, as the airline operates (by far) the most ultra long haul flights of any US carrier. So there’s no denying that United needs a sizable fleet of those planes. However, there’s simply no reason to not focus on the 787-10 for the rest of the network, including for Europe and South America.
The incremental operating costs of the 787-10 over the 787-9 are minimal, while the capacity boost is significant. Even if United doesn’t necessarily want planes to be much higher capacity in terms of passenger count, these planes can just be configured in a premium layout, with a lot of business class and premium economy seats, since that’s all the rage nowadays (like United is doing with its new 787-9s, which have just 222 seats).
I wouldn’t be surprised if these 787-10s eventually replace the 767s that United currently flies to European destinations like Frankfurt (FRA) and London (LHR), since they seem good for those kinds of missions.
I think the big mystery remains whether United has other plans for its long haul fleet renewal, beyond the 787. In other words, will United order the Boeing 777X or Airbus A350 at some point?
- The Boeing 777X seems unlikely, as it’s just “too much plane” for a US airline, at least based on their current strategies of having so many hubs
- The Airbus A350 wouldn’t be surprising at some point, especially a plane like the Airbus A350-1000, given its great economics and range
Bottom line
United Airlines has just converted 56 Boeing Dreamliner orders from the 787-9 to the 787-10. The airline had 141 787-9s on order, with (up until now) no plans to acquire 787-10s beyond the current 21 that are in the fleet. It makes perfect sense for United to focus more on the 787-10, given its extra capacity and great per-seat economics.
The 787-10 doesn’t have the range of the 787-9, but it’s sufficient for Europe, South America, and North Asia, which covers much of United’s network.
What do you make of United’s Dreamliner order update?
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