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United Airlines is introducing an all-new subfleet of planes that’ll operate on the nation’s most premium transcontinental routes.
The Chicago-based airline just teased the Airbus A321neo “Coastliner,” which will operate select coast-to-coast flights. United posted a teaser on its social media channels, but stopped short of providing more details like how it’ll be configured.
Nevertheless, here’s everything we know about the United Coastliner so far.
United Airbus A321neo Coastliner
United’s first Airbus A321neo in the Coastliner configuration just rolled out of the Airbus factory in Hamburg, Germany.
The airline didn’t have anything else to add beyond its 30-second teaser video, but according to reporting from xJonNYC, the Coastliner will operate exclusively between the New York area and Los Angeles and San Francisco.
The Coastliner is rumored to feature:
- 20 business-class seats in a 1-1 configuration
- 12 premium economy recliners in a 2-2 configuration
- 129 economy seats in a 3-3 configuration
The jet won’t just fly from Newark, but it’ll also operate to New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK). (As part of the Blue Sky tie-up with JetBlue, United will return to JFK in 2027.)
United plans to operate 40 Coastliners, and they’ll use the internal code “A321LF.”
Presumably, they’ll replace the (aging) Boeing 757s and wide-body jets that United currently flies on its premium transcontinental routes. It’s also possible that the airline will deploy the Coastliner in other premium coast-to-coast markets, such as Boston and Washington, D.C., to Los Angeles.
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Back in the day, United operated a subfleet of “p.s. Premium Service” Boeing 757s between the coasts. It phased out the p.s. branding in the late 2010s, but kept lie-flat seats for those sitting in the pointy end of the plane.
How United’s “Coastliner” compares to American and Delta
Both American and Delta also operate lie-flat-equipped jets on the nation’s most premier domestic routes.
American has historically used the three-cabin Airbus A321T (“T” for transcontinental) on these flights. At its peak, American had 17 A321Ts in its fleet, but it’s now reconfiguring them to a standard domestic configuration.
Instead, it will start deploying the new Airbus A321XLR (extra-long-range) on these routes. American’s A321XLRs will also fly long-haul transatlantic routes from the Northeast to secondary cities in Europe.
Like the Coastliner, the American XLR features lie-flat business-class pods, premium economy recliners, and standard economy seats.
Delta, meanwhile, has primarily used Boeing 757s and 767s on its premium domestic flights. These jets are aging, but the airline has a subfleet of Airbus A321neos that it’s also gearing up to deploy on coast-to-coast routes.
The premium Airbus A321neo will feature 16 Delta One lie-flat pods, 12 Premium Select recliners, and 120 economy seats.
Delta’s premium A321neo configuration is still awaiting regulatory certification, so in the meantime, the carrier will fly the plane in a posh configuration with 44 first-class recliners.
Delta will continue to operate premium transcon routes with Boeing 757s and 767s until the special A321neo configuration is ready.
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