Summary

• United Airlines has deferred the delivery of its Airbus A350 orders multiple times, with the first plane now expected to arrive no earlier than 2030.
• The airline has instead focused on expanding its fleet of Boeing 787 Dreamliners, with an additional 50 aircraft recently ordered.
• While the A350s ordered by United still appear in Airbus' data, it remains uncertain if the airline will ultimately accept them or choose another aircraft as a replacement for its aging Boeing 777-200s.

Way back in 2010, United Airlines had initially ordered 25 Airbus A350-900s. Over the years, this deal has evolved several times. In 2017, the airline said it was changing its existing order for 35 A350-1000 to 45 A350-900 widebody aircraft to replace older, less efficient aircraft. It's now been 13 years since United placed that order, and the legacy carrier has since doubled down heavily on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, adding another 50 this week to its already massive firm order for 100 jets. So, does the demand still exist for the A350 at United?

Not coming until 2030

Despite initially planning to take delivery of the A350 in 2020, United deferred this until 2027, per Aerotime. However, this was only temporary, and in late 2022, United CFO Gerry Laderman said the first plane wouldn't arrive until 2030 at the earliest. This would be two decades after the order was placed, definitely an anomaly at a time when carriers are desperate to get their hands on planes and spend years on waiting lists.

Meanwhile, United is doubling down on the 787 as its widebody of choice. After ordering a staggering 100 examples in 2022, it has exercised half its options to add another 50 last week. These Dreamliners will replace the 757 and 767 in the future, becoming the workhorse of the long-haul and high-yield domestic fleets.

For now, the 45 A350s ordered continue to appear in Airbus' order and delivery data, signaling that nothing has changed to this order over the past few years. And all hope might not be lost.

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United will eventually need to replace its 777-200s

As United Airlines' Boeing 777-200s fleet continues to get older, the Airbus A350 becomes more attractive as a replacement. At a length of 66.8 meters, the Airbus widebody offers a similar capacity, having just about three meters more compared to the 777-200's 63.7 meters. Laderman cited this again in December 2022, saying,

“But given the age of a good chunk of our 777s, the ultimate decision on what to replace the 777s with in their entirety is something we don’t have to decide right now."

Interestingly, the A350 is being teed up as the successor to the 777, which itself has a mixed age today. The older -200s average 24.4 years, while the newest -300ERs are only 5.8 years old. The former will be heading for the door in the next few years, and the A350 might be the perfect replacement for any mission the 787-10 cannot handle, like certain long-haul services.

For the time being, at least, United is continuing its long trend of kicking the can down the road. It knows the 787 isn't the perfect aircraft for all operations, owing to its range-capacity tradeoff, but also acknowledges that its current fleet is doing just fine. With an important relationship, the European giant will likely be glad to be in contention and keenly look forward to putting the first aircraft on the assembly line, hopefully just as the new decade begins.

What do you think about this longstanding order? Do you think United will eventually accept the A350 into its fleet? Or will something change yet again? Let us know what you think by leaving a comment.

Sources: Aerotime, Planespotters.net