United Airlines has officially announced ‘European Business Class’ as an option in coach on its new Airbus A321XLRs. They’re calling it Economy Plus Seats With Extra Elbow Room. This is “a row of Economy Plus seats…with extra elbow room and access to a shared table across an open middle seat.”
This new Economy Plus offering will be available for sale starting later this year. United expects to include this new Economy Plus option on its entire order of 50 A321XLRs and is exploring offering these types of seats on other aircraft types in the future.
Credit: United Airlines
On airlines within Europe, business class is usually the same seat as coach, with a middle seat that’s blocked with a table like this one. Often there’s not even more legroom, so here United is offering a better hard product in ‘Economy Plus’ than European airlines offer in their short haul business class, however it does not come with elevated catering or lounge access.
British Airways Club Europe
United Is Monetizing A Cost-Cutting Move
I revealed that this plane would have some middle seats blocked in order to fly with fewer flight attendants than would otherwise be required.
These are ordinary United-style economy seats, not a wider seat. The center seat is still there, but a table module covers the center cushion area. The idea is to render the seats unusable. United has said that the Airbus A321XLR will feature 150 seats. That’s an intentional number because each set of 50 seats for passengers adds another required flight attendant on board.
Under 14 CFR §121.391, for airplanes with more than 100 seats, the carrier needs two flight attendants plus one additional flight attendant for each unit of 50 passenger seats above 100. A plane with 150 seats needs 3 flight attendants, while a plane with 151 – 200 needs four. The doors on busienss class suites on this plane will add a flight attendant.
To get to 150 seats and 4 flight crew, it makes sense on the A321XLR to block two middle seats. Blocking these seats creates a better experience for the passengers around them. United has decided to charge for that better experience, which makes sense. It’s not yet clear what elite frequent flyers might have access to them at no charge.
Other Airlines Do This, Without The Tray Table
Prior to US Airways management taking over, American Airlines Boeing 737s had 154 seats – but four middles were blocked (in rows 16 and 17) to bring the seat count to 150 and save a flight attendant. US Airways leadership immediately added a row of seats, bringing the total to 160, and then eventually adding two more rows to get to 172.
Frontier Airlines ‘UpFront Plus’ sells blocked middle seats in the first two rows. Spirit tried something similar called ‘Go Comfy’.
Airlines used to block middle seats next to elite frequent flyers, releasing them to other passengers only when needed on full flights. This was a benefit at United Airlines until the end of 2007. It wasn’t a physical block, though, and didn’t affect flight attendant count.
Will We See These Seats On Other United Planes?
United says they are “exploring offering these types of seats on other aircraft types in the future” but what makes the product compelling on the A321XLR is that the natural configuration of this plane, once they’re doing 20 business class seats and 12 in premium economy, would give them 152 seats in coach. But that would require 5 flight attendants (4 per 50 passengers plus one because of the doors in business class) and blocking two seats this way lets them stick to 4 total flight attendants.
One additional flight attendant for two seats that may not even be used much of the time (since not every flight is 100% full) doesn’t make economic sense. Sticking to 150 seats, and selling four of those seats for more money because of the blocked middle seat, can be more attractive. That may not play out the same way with other aircraft.
I love United’s commercial ingenuity though, even if it means a more complex product suite such as their new ‘relax row’ that will allow 3 coach seats to turn into a bed starting next year, copying Air New Zealand’s Sky Couch innovation.
Credit: United Airlines
How United Is Using Its Airbus A321XLRs
The airline has only released renderings of the aircraft interior. Here are some additional photos of the plane.
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United Airlines is replacing its aging Boeing 757s on thinner long-haul routes with Airbus A321XLRs, and says the plane will open new Europe and South America markets with a premium product and lower cost per trip than risking a widebody aircraft – places like Spain, France, Portugal, and Brazil.
This summer they’ll begin swapping out 757s on current routes. Come winter those 757s become less capable, struggling against the headwinds when flying back to the U.S. The A321XLRs have somewhat limited range, too, but shold be able to handle Newark and Washington Dulles – Europe routes.
Lame. Intra-Europe ‘business’ class is a farce. Please do not bring this nonsense, here (USA). Recliners at a minimum (which, really should be called ‘Premium’ economy). Lie-flat is true ‘business’ class. ‘First’ should only exist where there is also a ‘business.’ Yes, the words matter.
Brilliant move to create a product they can sell and also cut costs. @1900 – I agree European Business Class isn’t really “business class” (outside of lounge access and slightly better catering). However, it is an elevated experience over the rest of the plane and nice to ensure the middle seat is blocked. Not sure why you say “do not bring this nonsense here” – it isn’t like the airline is taking anything away, unless you wanted to book that extra legroom middle seat, and provides more options for the traveling public. If offered with my United elite status at no cost I’d definitely book it over other extra legroom seats.
150 seats only necessitates 3 flight attendants, not 4.
At United the 321XLR minimum staffing will still be 4. As noted (albeit buried so as not to tarnish the headline) this is to mitigate the anticipated FAA requirement that aircraft with retractable suite doors staff 1 flight attendant over FAA minimum for the number of seats in the cabin… in this case 3+1, or 4+1 if the extra seats are activated
The real issue is that UA is willing to staff these aircraft w/ 4 FAs and didn’t have the foresight to not put over 150 seats on the aircraft during the design phase
as I have said for years, narrowbody TATL flights will offer a far inferior experience to widebody aircraft and UA just confirms that the economics don’t work to properly staff the XLR to provide a level of service comparable to a widebody
Another dumb TD comment. This config actually optimizes the amount of seats, any other choice they could have made would leave them with less than 150 seats and this actually gives them a way to make more money.
Also TATL on narrowbodies is fine, I’ve done it on TAP and enjoyed my flight. You’re being dramatic because the existence of the A321XLR is going to hurt Delta a lot as it’s basically designed to help airlines skip their partner hubs in Paris and Amsterdam by going direct to secondaries in France and Western Europe from the east coast. United’s partner hubs in Germany and Switzerland are affects but not as badly as people already today don’t want to connect in Munich to then back track to France etc.
Anyway I hope you’ll bring some logic to your comments soon! I saw Delta’s share price was done 3% on their results day… hope your share portfolio is okay!
Andy,
if UA was smart enough and had enough foresight, they would have never put 2 seats on the plane that they had to end up blocking. You look foolish trying to defend this stupidity.
UA has been flying to secondary cities in Europe on narrowbodies long after AA and DL quit doing so and yet DL consistently makes more money flying the Atlantic than UA does.
UA Is nothing more than a bloated inefficient airline that thinks that size translates into being better and yet every datapoint says that UA is inferior to DL.
and DAL is still worth billions more than UAL – so just like you fixating on cherrypicked data while failing to see let alone grasp the big picture.
btw, feel free to tell us which US airline stock has been the best performing over the past year and YTD? it sure isn’t UAL.
I’ve only flown European business class on AF and KL. The middle seats are not blocked in any fashion; just nobody is assigned to them. As the number of rows dedicated to Euro J is variable, actually blocking the seat adds a lot if work and a design that is not easy to swap in/out. Anyway, yes, I’d prefer my 85 minute AF or KL Euro J flight to be in an US-typical narrowbody with 2-2 (737, 320, 220) or 1-2 (Embraer). But, at 85 minutes Euro J doesn’t bother me. And, as European carriers don’t seem to upgrade elites or sell upgrades cheap, there many unfilled, assignable J seats.
United’s press release said they will staff with 5 flight attendants, the same number staffed on 757s, even though the 757s have 26 more seats than the A321XLRs.
“I love United’s commercial ingenuity”
I’m not sure that applauding United’s greed is really the way to go. United and Delta (AA has their own messes to deal with) have really made an art of screwing over passengers – particularly engaged loyalty members – over the past decade or so. I despise this. If they lose money overall because loyalty programs and flying don’t earn them enough to show a profit then I understand their need to raise prices. When they are showing a profit and still screw over passengers at every. possible. turn. then they are to be derided rather than praised. I’m in favor of making an honest buck, I just don’t think that going overboard on greed is the correct approach.
So, UA is offering routes with a 150-seat new plane that offers wider seats than the 176-seat 752s it replaces. There will be 4 FAs (and 4 lavs), on both) meaning the pax/FA ratio goes from 44:1 to 37.5:1 (same for lavs) with the new plane. The problem, they could have increased the ratio to 30.4 (5 FAs, 152 pax). The only bad for UA is PR.
Would expect Kirby would lobby Trump to have this cost raising regulation removed. Maybe that why they blocked the seat since some lobbying takes time.
What is keeping United Air from selling more tickets than available seats? Remember Dr. David Dao in 2019 who was a paid passenger on a United flight got beat up and than dragged off the plane by a smiling officer?