United Airlines will replace its 747-400s with 777-200ERs on services from Sydney and Melbourne to San Francisco and Los Angeles from April 1, 2014.
Star Alliance member United operates daily flights from Sydney and Melbourne to its San Francisco and Los Angeles hubs, and also operates a twice-weekly service from Cairns to Guam.
“The 777 will be the ideal aircraft for our Australia routes in terms of both capacity and customer amenities,” said United’s James Mueller. “Our trans-Pacific services from Sydney and Melbourne are an important part of United’s global route network and we look forward to offering our customers a full range of inflight products and services on the 777.”
The 777s will be configured with 269 seats in three cabins – eight in Global First, 40 in BusinessFirst and 221 in Economy, including 117 Economy Plus seats – representing a significant capacity cut from the airline’s 374-seat 747-400s.
Both Global First and BusinessFirst feature flat-bed seats, along with a wide range of premium-cabin services and amenities. All seats on the 777 feature personal monitors delivering a multi-channel Audio/Video on Demand inflight entertainment system, and all seats have access to power outlets. United is outfitting aircraft, including the 747-400 and 777, with global satellite Wi-Fi, offering inflight connectivity on long-haul international flights.
