United Airlines updates fleet composition as it surpasses key milestone in early 2025

Looking ahead to international service upgrades and potential changes to its Airbus A350 order status, United stated: "We already deliver a superior international experience and fly to the most places across the Atlantic and Pacific - these new innovations provide a more premium experience overall, give customers even more reasons to choose United, and set our airline up to grow into the next decade and beyond."

On the narrowbody side, United's current Airbus jets consist exclusively of A320ceo and A320neo family aircraft. The newest among these are forty-six A321neos; orders for another two hundred six units—including fifty long-range A321XLRs—are pending delivery. First-generation Airbus A319-100 aircraft remain active in significant numbers (81 units), averaging twenty-four years old with seating for twelve first class passengers and one hundred fourteen in economy. Slightly fewer but higher-capacity A320-200 models (73 units) have an average age approaching twenty-six years.

United is also a major operator of Boeing narrowbodies such as the iconic but aging single-aisle twinjet series: forty Boeing 757-200s (average age nearly twenty-nine) and twenty-one longer-body Boeing 757-300s (average age over twenty-three). The diverse Next Generation (NG) family forms another large segment with four variants present—from forty short-fuselage Boeing 737-700s (average age over twenty-six), through one hundred forty-one mid-size Boeing 737-800s (over twenty-one), to twelve standard-length B737-900s (twenty-four) plus one hundred thirty-six extended-range B737-900ER jets at just under thirteen years old.

For future growth in its narrowbody segment, United is turning toward newer technology from the manufacturer’s MAX line-up. The MAX family will eventually become dominant within United’s single aisle operations—the MAX9 variant is expected to surpass even current numbers for the popular B737-900ER model. While there are presently one hundred eleven MAX9 jets flying for United—each averaging three years old—an additional one hundred twelve units have been ordered. Additionally, there are currently one hundred twenty-three MAX8 aircraft averaging less than three years each; however no further orders exist for this specific type.

United Airlines continues to update both its product offerings on board as well as invest heavily in modernizing its extensive mixed-manufacturer fleet for efficiency into the next decade.