Go Back  FlyerTalk Forums > Miles&Points > Airlines and Mileage Programs > United Airlines | MileagePlus
Reload this Page >

✨ Polaris (& PP) Retrofits: Schedule, ....

Old May 29, 2017, 1:21 pm
FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
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, 46 86 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

Print Wikipost

✨ Polaris (& PP) Retrofits: Schedule, ....

Old Aug 25, 2018, 9:33 pm
  #1261  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Apr 2003
Programs: UA*Lifetime GS, Hyatt* Lifetime Globalist
Posts: 12,317
Originally Posted by StuckinITH
Good that you mention the divider as I was wondering about it. It makes for a better experience.

Did you happen to notice if row 20 (the bulkhead) has more space than rows 21 and 22? In E+ I always choose the bulkhead for that reason.
In BA's Premium Economy I also always chose the bulkhead seat but there it was for another reason: there was a seat alone.
Hard to assess from where I was standing. Overall row 20 to 22 have more legrooms than E+. I don’t think you can go wrong with row 20 as looks spacious to me.

StuckinITH likes this.

Last edited by UA_Flyer; Aug 30, 2018 at 7:04 am
UA_Flyer is offline  
Old Aug 28, 2018, 1:19 am
  #1262  
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Delaware
Programs: UA Mileage Plus, Amtrak Guest Rewards
Posts: 1,392
Has there been a problem with the PE seats on the 77W? N2332U exits SFO tomorrow and the seat map doesn't show a PE cabin. Also, N2331U, the only 77W with PE has been idle in SFO for 4 days after making only two domestic trips after getting PE installed.
phkc070408 is offline  
Old Aug 28, 2018, 2:46 pm
  #1263  
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: BOS<>NYC<>BKK
Programs: UA 4.3MM LT-GS; AA1MM; Amtrak SE; MAR LT TITAN; PC Plat; HIL DIA; HYA GLOB
Posts: 4,388
2131 is flying as UA901 SFO-LHR... as I type this I can see it taxiing from my seat 9L on UA869 SFO-HKG
UAL250 likes this.
wxguy is offline  
Old Aug 28, 2018, 11:46 pm
  #1264  
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Delaware
Programs: UA Mileage Plus, Amtrak Guest Rewards
Posts: 1,392
Originally Posted by wxguy
2131 is flying as UA901 SFO-LHR... as I type this I can see it taxiing from my seat 9L on UA869 SFO-HKG
I see that now. This is the first flight this bird has taken in 5 days, so I thought maybe something was wrong.
phkc070408 is offline  
Old Aug 29, 2018, 12:01 am
  #1265  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Northeast Kansas | Colorado Native
Programs: Amex Gold/Plat, UA *G, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott LT Gold, NEXUS, TSA Disparager Unobtanium
Posts: 21,594
A co-worker flew IAD-BRU, UA950, last night. When helping them use Mr. Chicken at MCI, the seatmap showed the 1-2-1 J config. Looks like it was N204UA
wxguy likes this.
FriendlySkies is offline  
Old Aug 29, 2018, 8:03 pm
  #1266  
Suspended
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Bay Area
Programs: DL SM, UA MP.
Posts: 12,729
Originally Posted by phkc070408
I see that now. This is the first flight this bird has taken in 5 days, so I thought maybe something was wrong.
So does that mean it's newly retrofitted and UA901 will be Polaris seats from now on?
wco81 is offline  
Old Aug 29, 2018, 8:22 pm
  #1267  
Moderator: Budget Travel forum & Credit Card Programs, FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: YYJ/YVR and back on Van Isle ....... for now
Programs: UA lifetime MM / *A Gold
Posts: 14,426
Originally Posted by wco81
So does that mean it's newly retrofitted and UA901 will be Polaris seats from now on?
No, frames rotate, though you are more likely to see Polaris on some routes than others. sCO 772s for now, not at all.
EmailKid is offline  
Old Aug 29, 2018, 11:19 pm
  #1268  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Oct 1999
Posts: 11,468
Originally Posted by EmailKid
No, frames rotate, though you are more likely to see Polaris on some routes than others. sCO 772s for now, not at all.
One reason to avoid B777 flights out of IAH.
cesco.g is offline  
Old Aug 30, 2018, 4:38 am
  #1269  
 
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: PHL
Programs: UA Plat, 2MM
Posts: 1,860
Have they stopped the retrofit? Looking at the retrofit schedule of a plane completed every 10 days, it almost seems that the completed and working on plane numbers have not changed in quite a while. What gives?
TonyBurr is offline  
Old Aug 30, 2018, 6:53 am
  #1270  
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: New York, NY
Programs: UA, AA, DL, Hertz, Avis, National, Hyatt, Hilton, SPG, Marriott
Posts: 9,442
Originally Posted by TonyBurr
Have they stopped the retrofit? Looking at the retrofit schedule of a plane completed every 10 days, it almost seems that the completed and working on plane numbers have not changed in quite a while. What gives?
People are taking the "one new plane every ten days" schedule literally (forgetting the deliberate 'on average' language) when it was clearly meant to be over the course of the entire program and inclusive of new deliveries. Right now, the aircraft with the most extensive required modifications (3-cabin 763) are close to wrapping up, should be some time this fall. This was a complete nose-to-tail gut and has been 8-10 weeks per frame, with some taking a bit longer. The existing 2-cabin 763s do not require nearly as much work and should be in and out of mod in less than half the time; same for the 787s and 764s. The 777s are running closer to the 763s since their work includes all-new seating and IFE throughout, but does not have as extensive an interior upgrade.

As far as the work actually stopping, that's not the case either. During the summer, the time where widebody flying is at its most profitable, UA went from three to two 763 mod lines in HKG. The current two aircraft, N647UA and N642UA, are nearing completion. In fact, N647UA should be back in the system next week, with 642 to follow. Each are coming off roughly 8-9 week stays for the retrofit work. That will enable 2 more IPTE 763s to go in for mod, leaving just 1 three-cabin 763 in service. It's possible that a 3rd line may reopen in HKG following the summer rush, but I am not certain of that. After the three-cabin 763s, the two-cabin ships (including the ex-HA 763s currently stored in GYR) will start up with the forthcoming 46J configuration for a total of 17 such frames (LHR anyone?).

The 777s have kept up three mod lines at XMN throughout the summer, which is an aggressive pace and again shows UA's commitment to the project. It would have been entirely justifiable to temporarily halt the mods to allow a full schedule of summer peak flying, when those assets are at their heaviest utilization, drawing their largest returns. The 777 progress slowed a bit earlier in the year to accommodate the supplemental type certification of the PE configuration, but now that it's been certified, two ships came out earlier in the month and two more (N792UA/N793UA) replaced them. Both should be finished by late September/early October. N791UA should be out any day now, and another 777 will follow.

If you look a little closer, the company is actually making some serious progress, and that should ramp up this fall.
jsloan, FlytheTail, narvik and 6 others like this.
EWR764 is offline  
Old Aug 30, 2018, 8:53 am
  #1271  
Moderator: Budget Travel forum & Credit Card Programs, FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: YYJ/YVR and back on Van Isle ....... for now
Programs: UA lifetime MM / *A Gold
Posts: 14,426
Originally Posted by cesco.g

One reason to avoid B777 flights out of IAH.
Unless you are in the back

And yes, this is the Polaris retrofit thread .....
EmailKid is offline  
Old Aug 30, 2018, 9:23 am
  #1272  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Oct 1999
Posts: 11,468
Originally Posted by EWR764
The existing 2-cabin 763s do not require nearly as much work and should be in and out of mod in less than half the time; same for the 787s and 764s.
Is there now confirmation that the 764s will see the new Polaris seats?
cesco.g is offline  
Old Aug 30, 2018, 10:11 am
  #1273  
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: New York, NY
Programs: UA, AA, DL, Hertz, Avis, National, Hyatt, Hilton, SPG, Marriott
Posts: 9,442
Originally Posted by cesco.g
Is there now confirmation that the 764s will see the new Polaris seats?
There is a configuration planned but it has not yet been budgeted. It's going to happen, but the priority appears to be completing the 767-300s and 777s first.
EWR764 is offline  
Old Aug 30, 2018, 10:13 am
  #1274  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Oct 1999
Posts: 11,468
Originally Posted by EWR764
There is a configuration planned but it has not yet been budgeted. It's going to happen, but the priority appears to be completing the 767-300s and 777s first.
Good to know. Thanks for the update!
Do you happen to know, if PE might be installed as well?
Hopefully, they will able to keep the seat count around 40 as in the current verion.
cesco.g is offline  
Old Aug 30, 2018, 10:15 am
  #1275  
 
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: NYC (Primarily EWR)
Programs: UA 1K / *G, Marriott Bonvoy Gold; Avis PC
Posts: 8,994
Originally Posted by EWR764
After the three-cabin 763s, the two-cabin ships (including the ex-HA 763s currently stored in GYR) will start up with the forthcoming 46J configuration for a total of 17 such frames (LHR anyone?).
Out of curiosity - where did the 17 frames for the J-heavy configuration for the 763s come from? I know about the retrofit plan, but I was unaware of the exact number of frames that would be getting that layout.
PsiFighter37 is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

This site is owned, operated, and maintained by MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Designated trademarks are the property of their respective owners.