United Plans 787s With New Polaris Seats, Ultra-Premium Configuration

United Airlines has just unveiled all-new cabins for long haul aircraft, a project that the airline is branding as United Elevate. While I’ve covered the details of the new cabins, in this post I want to talk a bit more about the new aircraft as such, as United is taking delivery of some ultra-premium Dreamliners.

United plans 787-9s with 64 Polaris business class seats

United already has a massive fleet of 75+ Boeing 787s, and the airline has an additional 140+ of these aircraft on order, which will be used for fleet renewal over the next decade or so. With United’s upcoming 787-9 deliveries, the airline plans to introduce an uber-premium configuration, with just 222 seats. Specifically, these planes will feature:

• 64 Polaris business class seats, spread across 16 rows, in a 1-2-1 configuration; eight of those will be Polaris Studio seats, which are the front row “business class plus” product
• 35 Premium Plus premium economy seats, spread across five rows, in a 2-3-2 configuration
• 123 economy seats, spread across 15 rows, in a 3-3-3 configuration; 39 of those will be Economy Plus extra legroom seats

For context on the layout, the area between the first and second set of doors will feature 32 business class seats, then the space between the second and third set of doors will feature 32 business class seats and 35 premium economy seats, and then the space between the third and fourth set of doors will feature 123 economy seats.

You can see the seat map below, courtesy of @xJonNYC. You’ll notice something unique, which is a function of United selecting the Adient Ascent product in business class. In the center section, the forward cabin has seats in a reverse herringbone configuration (with seats facing inward), while the rear cabin has seats in a herringbone configuration (with seats facing outward).

[image or embed]— JonNYC (@xjonnyc.bsky.social) May 12, 2025 at 6:00 PM

United’s current 787-9s are already among the most premium configured of any US airline, with 257 seats, including 48 business class seats, 21 premium economy seats, and 188 economy seats. In other words, this new configuration will see 16 extra business class seats, 14 extra premium economy seats, and 65 fewer economy seats.

United already has the largest long haul business class cabins of any US airline, on average, but this will really take it to the next level. These planes will presumably be pretty versatile, long term:

• On one end of the spectrum, the premium configuration will allow for even more range, given the lower weight of the aircraft
• On the other end of the spectrum, some of these 787-9s are expected to eventually replace the premium 767-300ERs that United operates, to markets like London (LHR), where the range isn’t necessarily needed, but the premium demand is there

What to expect onboard United’s new premium Dreamliners

As I’ve covered in a separate post, not only will the carrier’s upcoming Boeing 787-9s be in a more premium configuration, but they’ll feature new seats, tip-to-tail.

The most exciting new product is the new United Polaris Studio seating, not only featuring much more spacious seats, but also an improved soft product, ranging from a caviar amuse bouche, to upgraded champagne, to additional amenities.

Then there will be new United Polaris seats, featuring doors, and hugely upgraded tech, ranging from bluetooth audio, to more charging options, to high definition entertainment monitors.

The new Premium Plus also looks like a significant improvement, with privacy shields, and upgraded tech.

Lastly, in economy, we can expect larger entertainment monitors with bluetooth audio.

In terms of aircraft-wide tech, these 787-9s will also feature Starlink Wi-Fi, making these among the first wide body aircraft for the carrier to feature the new high speed and complimentary connectivity.

United’s new 787-9s will debut in early 2026

This new premium layout will be available on newly delivered Boeing 787-9s. The expectation is that the first 787-9 with this layout will join the fleet in late 2025, and enter international service in early 2026. The first two routes will be from San Francisco (SFO) to Singapore (SIN) and London (LHR).

United expects to have roughly 30 of these aircraft in service by the end of 2027. Note that while some existing United planes are expected to eventually be reconfigured with new cabins (the timeline is unclear), that doesn’t mean that they’ll get the same ultra premium layout, so expect them to be a bit higher density.

Bottom line

In early 2026, we’ll see the introduction of what’s probably the most premium aircraft we’ve ever seen operated by a US carrier. United plans to configure upcoming 787-9s with just 222 seats, including 64 Polaris business class seats.

So not only will these be the least densely configured aircraft of any US airline, but they’ll also feature United’s all-new cabins, including new Polaris seats, Starlink Wi-Fi, and much more. I look forward to these jets entering service!

What do you make of United’s new premium Boeing 787-9s?