United Airlines Receives Its First Boeing 787-9

United Airlines has taken delivery of its first Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner.

Although it is the third customer overall to take delivery of a Boeing 787-9, Air New Zealand and Japan’s All Nippon Airways (ANA) being the first two, United Airlines will become the first carrier in North America to operate both the 787-8 and 787-9.

United Airlines took delivery of its first Boeing 787-9 on September 4, 2014. In doing so it became the third airline to receive a Boeing 787-9, the second to operate both the 787-8 and the 787-9 and the first North American carrier to operate the first two models in the 787 family

It will also become the second carrier overall to operate both the Boeing 787-8 and 787-9, ANA being the first. Air New Zealand has not ordered 787-8s.

Earlier this year, United Airlines announced it will fly the 787-9 on what will become the longest 787 route ‒ a non-stop flight between Los Angeles and Melbourne in Australia.

United now operates 11 Boeing 787 Dreamliners and has an additional 54 on order. United Airlines has ordered 12 Boeing 787-8s, 26 787-9s and 27 787-10s and also holds options on another 35 787s.

To date United is the only North American airline to have ordered all three models in the Boeing 787 family.