Last edit by: kirkwoodj
Check the current status of aircraft reconfigured (or delivered) with new Polaris seats: http://view.ceros.com/united/polaris...-desktop-4/p/3.
A Polaris Update and Polaris Mod Schedule to indicate the status of specific aircraft are maintained by those that manage the United Airlines Fleet Website.
Except for 773- and 781-operated flights, and those markets selling Premium Plus, Polaris-equipped planes have not been allocated to specific routes. You won't know until approx. 36-48 hours before departure if you'll have a newly reconfigured aircraft, and even then, it may be replaced with a non-retrofitted aircraft.
777-300ER - All 22 aircraft have Polaris (60 seats) and installation of Premium Plus cabins (24 seats) is complete.
767-300ER - As of September 2020, 31 of the 38 aircraft have been reconfigured with the Polaris seats.
- Retrofit is from 3-cabin to 2-cabin with direct-aisle-access seats. No 3-cabin 767s remain in service.
- 76A configuration is 30J/50Y+/134Y, total of 214; fleet to consist of 17 ships (former 3-cabin 767s).
- 76L configuration is 46J/22PE/47Y+/52Y; fleet to consist of 21 ships (18 former 2-cabin 76C and 3 used ships from Hawaiian).
767-400ER - [16 aircraft] None updated yet; modifications put on hold due to Covid-19.
777-200ER - As of September 2020, 46 of the 50 aircraft have been reconfigured with Polaris and Premium Plus seats.
- Configuration is 50 Polaris seats, 32 in the front cabin and 18 in the second cabin (behind 2L/R)
- Configuration is 10 across in economy, with 24 Premium Plus seats, 4686 E+ seats and 156 E seats, with E+ in front economy cabin plus exit rows and bulkhead at 3L/R, i.e., almost the same as current pmCO planes, except with 4 seats in middle section.
- Seat map (v5) on united.com
787-8, 787-9 - As of November 2022, all 787-8/9 are converted or in mod. No chance of flying old configuration anymore.
- 788 configuration has 28 Polaris seats (20 in front cabin, 8 in rear mini-cabin), and 21 Premium Plus seats (2-3-2).
- 789 configuration has 48 Polaris seats (32 in front cabin, 16 in rear mini-cabin), and 21 Premium Plus seats (2-3-2).
787-10 - 13 787-10s have been delivered in 2020. All come with Polaris and Premium Plus cabins factory-installed. Another 19 should be added by 2024.
FAQ:
Q: Does a Polaris ticket mean the aircraft has the new Polaris seat?
A: No, Polaris is the label UA uses for long haul international business class. It is also the label UA uses for the new seats, so this does create some confusion.
All the 773s and 787-10s are 100% the new seat.
The rest of the long haul fleet in various stages of conversion, see http://view.ceros.com/united/polaris...-desktop-4/p/3
Q: How to tell if my aircraft is the new style Polaris seats?
A: If the unassigned business class section is showing orange seats or all the seats are side-by-side or there is a section for 4 adjacent seats in the middle, this is an old style lie-flat aircreaft
If the unassigned bussines class seats are dark blue seats or the all the seats appear to have direct aisle access, then you aircraft is the new Polaris seat.
You can also look at the FT maintained, United Fleet Site and crosscheck the tail number or check thePolaris Update tab
Q: How to tell if my aircraft has the new PremiumPlus (PP) / Premium Economy seats?
A: If the unassigned seats just behind business class are purple seats or the aircraft is 773 or 787-10, then yes. However, the purple color seat will only show on routes where PP is being sold.
Aircraft with PP seats are being used on some routes but are not being sold as PP. In those cases, the seats are considered to be a part of E+. In those cases, an indicator of PP sold as E+ will be if the first few rows of economy, there are just 2 seats on the sides (with the rest of E+ showing 3 seats).
Q: Will the aircraft I see at booking be the same configuration at flight time?
A: Unfortunately with the fleet in transit, aircraft swaps happen. UA tends to use placeholders until 2 days before travel and even after that last minute swaps do happen.
Q: My flight seat map shows 772 with polaris seats is it a retrofit?
A: Possibly. The flight status page shows the most accurate scheduled aircraft. If a 77W is swapped in, it will list the aircraft as 777-300ER. However, if the 772's seatmap shows blue rectangular boxes in the business class cabin instead of orange "pointy rounds", this would indicate that a retrofit aircraft has been swapped.
See also: United Future/Changed Routes w/ Polaris seats
A Polaris Update and Polaris Mod Schedule to indicate the status of specific aircraft are maintained by those that manage the United Airlines Fleet Website.
Except for 773- and 781-operated flights, and those markets selling Premium Plus, Polaris-equipped planes have not been allocated to specific routes. You won't know until approx. 36-48 hours before departure if you'll have a newly reconfigured aircraft, and even then, it may be replaced with a non-retrofitted aircraft.
777-300ER - All 22 aircraft have Polaris (60 seats) and installation of Premium Plus cabins (24 seats) is complete.
767-300ER - As of September 2020, 31 of the 38 aircraft have been reconfigured with the Polaris seats.
- Retrofit is from 3-cabin to 2-cabin with direct-aisle-access seats. No 3-cabin 767s remain in service.
- 76A configuration is 30J/50Y+/134Y, total of 214; fleet to consist of 17 ships (former 3-cabin 767s).
- 76L configuration is 46J/22PE/47Y+/52Y; fleet to consist of 21 ships (18 former 2-cabin 76C and 3 used ships from Hawaiian).
767-400ER - [16 aircraft] None updated yet; modifications put on hold due to Covid-19.
777-200ER - As of September 2020, 46 of the 50 aircraft have been reconfigured with Polaris and Premium Plus seats.
- Configuration is 50 Polaris seats, 32 in the front cabin and 18 in the second cabin (behind 2L/R)
- Configuration is 10 across in economy, with 24 Premium Plus seats, 46
- Seat map (v5) on united.com
787-8, 787-9 - As of November 2022, all 787-8/9 are converted or in mod. No chance of flying old configuration anymore.
- 788 configuration has 28 Polaris seats (20 in front cabin, 8 in rear mini-cabin), and 21 Premium Plus seats (2-3-2).
- 789 configuration has 48 Polaris seats (32 in front cabin, 16 in rear mini-cabin), and 21 Premium Plus seats (2-3-2).
787-10 - 13 787-10s have been delivered in 2020. All come with Polaris and Premium Plus cabins factory-installed. Another 19 should be added by 2024.
FAQ:
Q: Does a Polaris ticket mean the aircraft has the new Polaris seat?
A: No, Polaris is the label UA uses for long haul international business class. It is also the label UA uses for the new seats, so this does create some confusion.
All the 773s and 787-10s are 100% the new seat.
The rest of the long haul fleet in various stages of conversion, see http://view.ceros.com/united/polaris...-desktop-4/p/3
Q: How to tell if my aircraft is the new style Polaris seats?
A: If the unassigned business class section is showing orange seats or all the seats are side-by-side or there is a section for 4 adjacent seats in the middle, this is an old style lie-flat aircreaft
If the unassigned bussines class seats are dark blue seats or the all the seats appear to have direct aisle access, then you aircraft is the new Polaris seat.
You can also look at the FT maintained, United Fleet Site and crosscheck the tail number or check thePolaris Update tab
Q: How to tell if my aircraft has the new PremiumPlus (PP) / Premium Economy seats?
A: If the unassigned seats just behind business class are purple seats or the aircraft is 773 or 787-10, then yes. However, the purple color seat will only show on routes where PP is being sold.
Aircraft with PP seats are being used on some routes but are not being sold as PP. In those cases, the seats are considered to be a part of E+. In those cases, an indicator of PP sold as E+ will be if the first few rows of economy, there are just 2 seats on the sides (with the rest of E+ showing 3 seats).
Q: Will the aircraft I see at booking be the same configuration at flight time?
A: Unfortunately with the fleet in transit, aircraft swaps happen. UA tends to use placeholders until 2 days before travel and even after that last minute swaps do happen.
Q: My flight seat map shows 772 with polaris seats is it a retrofit?
A: Possibly. The flight status page shows the most accurate scheduled aircraft. If a 77W is swapped in, it will list the aircraft as 777-300ER. However, if the 772's seatmap shows blue rectangular boxes in the business class cabin instead of orange "pointy rounds", this would indicate that a retrofit aircraft has been swapped.
See also: United Future/Changed Routes w/ Polaris seats
✨ Polaris (& PP) Retrofits: Schedule, ....
#2671
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: LAX
Posts: 174
UA does not assign specific aircraft until about two days before departure. UA will try to use a PremPlus equip aircraft on a route where they have been selling PremPlus to avoid the downgrade issue. Where UA is not selling PremPlus, it will show the old config until the 2 day mark even thought the odd it will be a new config.
With the widebody shortage due to the extend grounding of the PW 772, UA is scrambling alot and hard to predict much in advance.
With the widebody shortage due to the extend grounding of the PW 772, UA is scrambling alot and hard to predict much in advance.
Are you saying that UA is only displaying the domestic 772 as a default, but I could potentially get other 772 configurations at T-2 days? Or does the fact that it's showing up as a domestic 772 guarantee I will have non-polaris seats, assuming no further equipment changes?
#2672
Moderator: United Airlines; FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: SFO
Programs: UA Plat 1.85MM, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Plat/LT Gold, Hilton Silver, IHG Plat
Posts: 62,361
Just want to make sure I am understanding you correctly here. My flight from EWR-LAX was originally booked as a 787-10, but is now showing up as a domestic 772 (with only four rows of J seats and no PP).
Are you saying that UA is only displaying the domestic 772 as a default, but I could potentially get other 772 configurations at T-2 days? Or does the fact that it's showing up as a domestic 772 guarantee I will have non-polaris seats, assuming no further equipment changes?
Are you saying that UA is only displaying the domestic 772 as a default, but I could potentially get other 772 configurations at T-2 days? Or does the fact that it's showing up as a domestic 772 guarantee I will have non-polaris seats, assuming no further equipment changes?
In a more stable environment UA's practice is to select a type but the specific aircraft is not select until 2 days earlier. Generally that is not notice but for aircraft types with subfleets, like 739s or 789s, that can be noticed.
And of course in case of irrops, there can be last minute swaps.
#2673
Join Date: Nov 2014
Programs: UA 2MM
Posts: 1,596
Just want to make sure I am understanding you correctly here. My flight from EWR-LAX was originally booked as a 787-10, but is now showing up as a domestic 772 (with only four rows of J seats and no PP).
Are you saying that UA is only displaying the domestic 772 as a default, but I could potentially get other 772 configurations at T-2 days? Or does the fact that it's showing up as a domestic 772 guarantee I will have non-polaris seats, assuming no further equipment changes?
Are you saying that UA is only displaying the domestic 772 as a default, but I could potentially get other 772 configurations at T-2 days? Or does the fact that it's showing up as a domestic 772 guarantee I will have non-polaris seats, assuming no further equipment changes?
#2674
Join Date: May 2007
Programs: UA 1K, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 4,481
In the before times, i.e., with a fully operational and utilized widebody fleet, the 772HD and 772 with Polaris/PP were more or less treated as separate subfleets. Most close-in and day-of aircraft swaps were limited to those in the same subfleet and configuration, but there are odd swaps here and there when they really need to get a flight out and they use whatever spare they have available. Further in advance, schedule changes, including equipment changes to a different aircraft type or subfleet, are possible.
#2675
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Delaware
Programs: UA Mileage Plus, Amtrak Guest Rewards
Posts: 1,287
Is there any insight as to when the remaining 789s will start to enter MOD? Over 20 PW 772s have returned to service, what seems like more than enough to get the last 4 started up.
Slightly OT, but relevant, why are they still using 787s for Domestic TCons? I would think that the PWs, that are restricted to Mainland US would be used to free up the eights and GE 772s for over water flights.
Slightly OT, but relevant, why are they still using 787s for Domestic TCons? I would think that the PWs, that are restricted to Mainland US would be used to free up the eights and GE 772s for over water flights.
#2676
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Southern California
Posts: 255
My guess is probably July as they cut several route for all of June. That will let them to continue to build slack in the network. I am unsure if the 772 and 789s take up the same physical lines while at XMN, but there are 5 772s currently there and 1 777ER. I would think until they are comfortable with the planes for the summer season, cosmetic cabin upgrades are on the back burner to ensure revenue opportunities are realized.
#2677
Join Date: Nov 2014
Programs: UA 2MM
Posts: 1,596
My guess is probably July as they cut several route for all of June. That will let them to continue to build slack in the network. I am unsure if the 772 and 789s take up the same physical lines while at XMN, but there are 5 772s currently there and 1 777ER. I would think until they are comfortable with the planes for the summer season, cosmetic cabin upgrades are on the back burner to ensure revenue opportunities are realized.
#2678
Join Date: May 2017
Programs: United currently plat
Posts: 188
Hope and pray that EWR764 is on to something. The 773 stay on the SFO<->HNL for now.. (:
#2679
Join Date: Nov 2020
Location: YVR/YYZ
Programs: AC50K, *A Gold, Marriott Titanium, Hilton Gold
Posts: 290
Is there any pattern if Polaris 789s are more frequently found on ex-LAX or ex-DEN routes? Considering NRT shortly, and I know only about 50% of the 789s are retrofitted. My options are LAX or DEN.
#2680
Join Date: May 2007
Programs: UA 1K, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 4,481
Not true--at this time 34 out of 38 789s have been retrofitted. There is no systematic rhyme or reason over where the remaining unretrofitted frames show up, so book the routing that is more convenient for you.
#2681
Join Date: Nov 2020
Location: YVR/YYZ
Programs: AC50K, *A Gold, Marriott Titanium, Hilton Gold
Posts: 290
#2683
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: MSP
Posts: 217
We've made it to the end of the pre-polaris 789s!
27958 is headed to Guam on Tuesday.
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/...710Z/KSFO/PGUM
Feeling better about my November trips now.
27958 is headed to Guam on Tuesday.
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/...710Z/KSFO/PGUM
Feeling better about my November trips now.

#2684
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Houston
Programs: UA GS 2.5MM/Lifetime UC, QFF Platinum, Hilton Lifetime Diamond, HawaiianMiles
Posts: 7,967
We've made it to the end of the pre-polaris 789s!
27958 is headed to Guam on Tuesday.
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/...710Z/KSFO/PGUM
Feeling better about my November trips now.
27958 is headed to Guam on Tuesday.
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/...710Z/KSFO/PGUM
Feeling better about my November trips now.

#2685
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Aug 2003
Programs: UA 1K 1MM (finally!), IHG AMB-Spire, HH Diamond
Posts: 59,156
We've made it to the end of the pre-polaris 789s!
27958 is headed to Guam on Tuesday.
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/...710Z/KSFO/PGUM
Feeling better about my November trips now.
27958 is headed to Guam on Tuesday.
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/...710Z/KSFO/PGUM
Feeling better about my November trips now.


I figured they would try to stick it to SFO-SIN one last time….