The Associated Press is reporting that United has decided to order (25) Boeing 787-8 and (25) A350-900 aircraft with deliveries starting in 2016.   Options for 50 additional aircraft (of each type) are also included. 

The order isn’t a surprise in that it has been commonly known that United was considering a purchase.  Even the split between types doesn’t really come as a surprise.  United Airlines is already an Airbus customer and United Airlines is *not* a party to the gentleman’s agreement to buy only Boeing aircraft.  American Airlines, Delta Airlines and Continental Airlines are parties to that agreement which gives them access to early positions on the production line(s) and preferential pricing.   That is how AA managed to land early delivery slots when they made their order for the 787 earlier this year.

Some will be surprised that United didn’t buy more 777 aircraft but I’m not sure that would have made sense for them.  They don’t necessarily need the cargo lift that a 777 offers and, frankly, this order wasn’t for 777 replacement aircraft.   These aircraft will replace 747s (with more frequency) and 767s (one for one) as United retires those two types from its fleet. 

 I suspect United decided to not keep all their eggs in one basket and chose the A350 because it would be newer and more efficient for the type of routes United serves.  Nothing more, nothing less. 

Lack of a firm offering for the 787-10 is starting to become visible.   This is the dawn of that omission and it will be a glaring one in another 12 to 18 months.   Airlines would like to have some confidence that they can purchase a fleet that spans the three basic types for various missions and which doesn’t require a different pilot rating for each type.   Confirming the 787-10 and preparing an offer to airlines wouldn’t be an unwise thing on Boeing’s part.

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