The origins of United Airlines can be traced back to a small mail carrier called Varney Air Lines, which was founded at Boise, Idaho, by Walter T. Varney in April 1926.
Today it is one of the world’s largest airlines, with a network covering six continents and a fleet of almost 900 aircraft.
In this article we’ll give an overview of the United Airlines fleet and operations.
Mainline Fleet
Mainline United Airlines has the following fleet at the time of writing:
- 81x Airbus A319-100
- 99x Airbus A320-200
- 40x Boeing 737-700
- 141x Boeing 737-800
- 148x Boeing 737-900/900ER
- 42x Boeing 737 MAX 8
- 55x Boeing 737 MAX 9
- 40x Boeing 757-200
- 21x Boeing 757-300
- 37x Boeing 767-300ER
- 16x Boeing 767-400ER
- 55x Boeing 777-200ER
- 22x Boeing 777-300ER
- 12x Boeing 787-8
- 38x Boeing 787-9
- 21x Boeing 787-10
Orders
In addition to the existing fleet, United Airlines has the following aircraft on order:
- 70x Airbus A321neo
- 50x Airbus A321XLR
- 45x Airbus A350-900
- 422x Boeing 737 MAX (split over -8, -9 and -10 models)
- 100x Boeing 787 (split over -8, -9 and -10 models)
United Express
Alongside its mainline operation, United Airlines has agreements with a number of airlines to operate under the United Express feeder banner.
This adds an additional 548 aircraft to United’s active fleet.
These comprise:
Air Wisconsin – 51x Bombardier CRJ200
CommuteAir – 64x Embraer 145
GoJet Airlines – 67x Bombardier CRJ550 (orders for 7 more)
Mesa Airlines – 80x Embraer 175 (orders for 38x Bombardier CRJ900 and 200 Heart Aerospace ES-30)
Republic Airways – 35x Embraer 170, 28x Embraer 175
SkyWest Airlines – 114x Bombardier CRJ200, 19x Bombardier CRJ700, 90x Embraer 175
Stored and Retired Types
United has been actively retiring some aircraft from its fleet over recent years as newer, more modern types come in.
Older models of the Airbus A319 fleet will be retired over the next year.
Some of the Boeing 737 Next Generation models will be retired over coming years.
The Boeing 767-300ER fleet will also be retired by 2030. Some of the older 777-200/200ER fleet is also being replaced by the 787.
Current Bases
United Airlines currently operates from the following main bases:
Chicago O’Hare, IL; Denver International, CO; Guam; Houston George Bush Intercontinental, TX; Los Angeles International, CA; Newark Liberty International, NJ; San Francisco International, CA; Washington Dulles, VA
United Airlines Special Liveries
United has relatively few special liveries among its fleet. Notable examples include:
N475UA, Airbus A320-200, wears special 85th anniversary retro livery.
N75435, Boeing 737-900, wears retro Continental Airlines livery.
Various aircraft also wear Star Alliance livery, including 2x Boeing 737-800, 1x Boeing 757-200, 1x Boeing 767-300ER, 1x Boeing 767-400ER, 4x Boeing 777-200ER
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