United Airlines Seatbacks
Courtesy: United Airlines
United Airlines‘ plan to revamp the cabins on its older narrow-body planes is running behind schedule due to supply chain strains, the carrier told CNBC this week. The upgrades include greater premium cabins, seat-back entertainment screens throughout the planes, Bluetooth capabilities and other amenities.
The Chicago-based airline previously expected to have 100 of its narrow-body planes retrofitted with the brand new interiors by the tip of the yr but now expects 60 can be complete by then, a spokeswoman said.
“The truth is the provision challenges across the board whether it’s [inflight entertainment] systems, chips, seats and lots of other things are only more difficult than they’ve ever been in our business,” United’s chief business officer, Andrew Nocella, said on an earnings call last week.
United unveiled the overhauled cabins in June 2021 on the heels of an order for 270 recent Boeing and Airbus narrow-body planes, an effort to refresh its brand as airlines compete for passengers within the travel rebound, particularly big spenders.
United has also said it expects to have more premium seats on the market for every departure than every other airline in North America by 2026 as travelers compete for what might be elusive upgrades and the ranks of elite travelers with piles of frequent flyer points swell.
United’s Nocella said last week that the carrier may have multiple production lines revamping the interiors of the narrow-body planes this summer, helping to choose up the pace.
The carrier expects about one in three aircraft in its narrow-body fleet, including recent aircraft, may have the upgraded interior by the tip of the yr.
“It is going to just take a bit bit longer than we had originally intended,” he said. A United Airbus A319 was recently modified and ought to be flying soon, he added.
The airline had targeted 2025 to finish the narrow-body upgrades, however it’s unclear if United will make that goal.
Individually, United said that every one of its wide-body aircraft can be outfitted with premium economy seats and its Polaris seats, the carrier’s top-tier class on international and other long-haul flights, by August.
Other airlines like JetBlue and Delta Air Lines have also added amenities on their planes in recent times, upgrading their top-tier classes, installing recent seats and adding some services, including free Wi-Fi.
Delta executives have said that revenue growth for premium seats like business class or premium economy has outpaced sales from standard coach.
“We see high stickiness to those products,” Glen Hauenstein, Delta’s president, said on the corporate’s quarterly call earlier this month. “So once you begin flying in those cabins, you tend not to return.”
