First United 767-300ER with Reconfigured Cabins Goes into Service

United Airlines has introduced into international service its first reconfigured Boeing 767-300ER, with the June 11 evening departure of flight UA908 from Chicago to Amsterdam.

The first reconfigured United Boeing 767-300ER now features flat-bed seats in an all-new United BusinessFirst cabin, along with an upgraded in-flight entertainment system throughout.

United Airlines is reconfiguring 14 767-300ERs with the new interior, which offers 30 seats in United BusinessFirst, 49 in Economy Plus and 135 in Economy.

Each United Airlines BusinessFirst seat offers a flat-bed, on-demand audio and video content, electrical and USB outlets, and an iPod jack

In addition to flat-bed seats, United BusinessFirst offers a 15.4-inch touchscreen monitor delivering on-demand in-flight audio and video content, electrical and USB outlets for charging electronic devices, an iPod jack enabling customers to play content from their iPod-compatible devices and a five-course meal with fine wines.

The seats in United’s Economy Plus premium-economy cabin provide more legroom and more recline than Economy seats. Each Economy Plus and Economy seat features a 9-inch touchscreen on-demand, in-flight entertainment system and all Economy rows have access to electrical outlets.

On long-haul international flights, United offers Economy Plus and Economy customers complimentary food, soft drinks, juices, tea and coffee.

In addition to the interior changes, the first reconfigured 767-300ER now features blended winglets, which offer fuel savings on long-haul flights by reducing the amount of drag on the aircraft.

This modification is part of a $550 million investment in fleet-wide onboard improvements which United Airlines announced last year. This also includes:

● Offering the largest fleet of aircraft with flat-bed seats among U.S. carriers. Nearly 150 United aircraft now offer flat-bed seats in premium cabins. United is retrofitting more than 30 additional aircraft, with the retrofits scheduled for completion by early 2013;

● Expanding extra-legroom economy seating to provide the most such seating of any U.S. carrier. More than 550 United-operated aircraft offer Economy Plus seating, as do 150 larger United Express regional jets. United plans to expand Economy Plus availability to an additional 100 aircraft this year, including United’s two-cabin Boeing 777-200ERs, with the retrofits scheduled for completion this summer;

● Revamping the airline’s transcontinental p.s. (Premium Service) fleet. United plans to replace the existing United First and United Business cabins with an all-new United BusinessFirst, modeled after the existing United First service, but also offering flat-bed seats and on-demand in-flight audio and video content. The aircraft will feature an in-flight entertainment system in individual seat-back monitors for Economy customers as well;

● Introducing inflight connectivity. United expects to introduce satellite-based Wi-Fi later in 2012; and

● Improving in-flight entertainment options on the Boeing 747-400 fleet. Beginning in the fourth quarter, United plans to offer Economy customers a selection of video programming available for wireless streaming.

To search for low fares, click here.