Originally Posted by
EWR764
Who knows when demand will actually support resumed ULH flying, and with what scale?
UA has already guided that new 789s (in Polaris/PP configuration) will operate the longest flights in the system. Some or most of them, though, probably won’t be returning until 2022, if ever. I am not optimistic about the 2021 route launches, either.
Sadly we are nowhere near a position where we can flip a switch and go back to 2x SFO-SIN, IAH- SYD, etc., any time soon.
Seems like Polaris/PP 789s will only be guaranteed on EWR-JNB and SFO-BLR, as these routes require the performance package that only a subset of new 789 deliveries come with; the fact that these birds come with Polaris/PP from the factory is a mere coincidence.
For now, they are unwilling to commit the Polaris/PP 789s to other ULH routes like SFO-SIN and IAH-SYD, likely because that would entail creating a second subfleet. You'd need a subfleet of Polaris/PP 789s, of which there are about a dozen, and then you'd need a further subfleet of those birds, with the performance package, for the JNB and BLR routes--all of which sounds like a big operational headache.