Polaris Lounge, United Airlines' $41 million VIP space for certain passengers awaiting long-haul flights at Dulles International Airport, opens to the public Thursday. Each Polaris lounge features an open and airy design, restaurant-quality a la carte dining, and an aviation-themed cocktail menu. Is there any place we can complain to? SFO-TLV, SFO-DEL, ORD-TLV and ORD-DEL all still use the old 789 configuration. (premium service) flight. Small-business credit card vs. corporate credit card: Which is right for your business? While not a perfect indicator, a change in seat assignment often corresponds to a change in aircraft type. Note that if you have multiple orders, the most recent one will display. Register to ship with us or enroll to book online. Long before the first Polaris lounge opened or the first plane to feature new Polaris seats completed a single flight, billboards and TV ads were popping up all over the country, promising a re-imagined flying experience. Please view our advertising policy page for more information. introduced the Polaris business class product, 777-300ER Polaris Newark (EWR) to Tokyo (NRT), 777-200 Polaris Washington D.C. (IAD) to Frankfurt (FRA), 787-9 Polaris Johannesburg (JNB) to Newark (EWR), 787-10 Polaris San Francisco (SFO) to Newark (EWR), internationally-equipped Boeing 777-200ERs, Every United business-class seat ranked from best to worst, Want to make sure youre flying real United Polaris? Initially, the carrier seemed to be investing more heavily in marketing billboards than in actually getting its game-changing new premium cabin into service. United Mainline Fleet. These continue to have 2-4-2 seating in business class. Since youre going to be spending so much time in your seat, thats exactly where well start. Above the 16-inch inflight entertainment system, youll find a bar to help you stand up from your seat without rocking the person in front of you. We can see from the Polaris tracker that 27 of the 38 Boeing 767s have been retrofitted vs. only one of the 12 787-8s. Outside of the current welcome bonus, youre only earning higher rewards on specific airfare and hotel purchases, so its not a great card for other spending categories. In exchange for the annual fee, you'll unlock access to the Amex Membership Rewards program that let you access airline and hotel transfer partners, along with new lifestyle and travel credits. Polaris is on most of Uniteds widebody fleet, with only a few aircraft types still needing to be retrofitted. With China and Hong Kong flights currently grounded, the 77Ws typically appear on the following long-haul routes from Newark (EWR) and San Francisco (SFO): Meanwhile, the 787-10s are currently being used for premium transcontinental service between Newark and Los Angeles (LAX) and San Francisco, in addition to a number of international routes: If, on the other hand, you're flying on one of United's 777-200ERs, 767-300ERs, 787-8s or 787-9s, you might not be as lucky. Similarly, the Polaris Lounges are a significant upgrade to the current United Clubs. Like its inflight product, United has had delays rolling out new lounges as well. Here is the link: http://view.ceros.com/united/polaris.-desktop-4/p/1 The next new Polaris lounges in EWR, SFO and LHR are listed as opening "by early 2018." As a result, it's critical that you do your own homework. Polaris is what United calls its premium travel product, which extends beyond class of travel to encompass the entire travel experience: a personal on-board suite,. Did you know that FlightAware flight tracking is supported by advertising? View container compatibility with our aircraft. If, on the other hand, you're only looking to fly the most up-to-date product, you simply can't be certain that that you'll get a plane with the new Polaris seats. Aeroplan is another great option for booking United award tickets. Related: United exec details reopening plans for airport clubs, Polaris Lounges. Hopefully Brussels, Dublin, and all destinations will soon feature the new seats. That's exactly the case with the Amex Platinum card. Enrollment required. FYI as of Feb 20, 2023, from sentence in the article above- Follow along with the United Polaris tracker to see the fleet retrofit. Click the weblink and get This experience has been removed by the publisher. Our opinions are our own, and have not been reviewed, approved, or endorsed by our advertising partners. Disclaimer: Please note that the UA899 flight status provided here is for informative purposes only. For IAD, I long was under the impression that the reason was that most of the transcon traffic to DC was governmental/ corporate contracts, so unlike NYC, they did not think they needed to make it attractive, just direct. The new Polaris seats are swanky. Those new 777s operate the following routes, in addition to the occasional one-off: Not on flights to Asia, Australia, Europe or South America. The retrofitted 767s are a much simpler story. The new Boeing 787-10 and the Airbus A350 will be delivered with the new product as well. American Express has expanded The Centurion Network to include 40+ Centurion Lounge and Studio locations worldwide. With so many allergies in our modern world (garlic for me) it would be so nice to be able to eat a meal after paying so much for the flight! For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Bevy American Express Card, click, For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express card, click, For rates and fees of The Platinum Card from American Express, click, For rates and fees of the American Express Gold Card, click. At 22 inches wide, SeatGuru says that the seats on the 772 are one inch narrower than the 77W, but when a TPG staffer flew a 772 retrofitted with Polaris seats, they said it felt the same as the 77W. See cargo specifications and capacity for our fleet. From flight delays to cancelations, passengers can track the complete UA899 flight schedule here. We'll start by discussing the 777s, which make up the bulk of the Polaris fleet. For an explanation of our Advertising Policy, visit. But at this point, the Polaris seat seems to me to be roughly the same quality as the other major carriers. Thus the work has been extensively done in China, or perhaps totally in China. Have you ever tried contacting the airline before your flight? Related: Where to sit when flying Uniteds 777-200 Polaris business class. For rates and fees of The Platinum Card from American Express, click here.For rates and fees of the American Express Gold Card, click here. United made a huge upgrade with the introduction of the Polaris Lounge. Many of the credit card offers that appear on this site are from credit card companies from which we receive financial compensation. The incompetence is unbelievable quite honestly even for the incredibly low bar set by US legacy carriers. Products. A few weeks after booking I got a notification from AwardWallet telling me my seat assignments had changed from two middle seats to two window seats in different rows. However, the disconnect between expectation and reality created confusion around the Polaris brand and what it actually entails. is a former reporter for the site, covering all things points, miles, credit cards, travel and aviation. ), Hot Tip:Check to see if youre eligible for a welcome bonus offer of up to 90,000 points with the Amex Gold card! For more information on the Polaris experience, you can check out the following TPG reviews: While the Polaris soft product (food, service, amenities) rolled out a little early, the full experience, including the redesigned modern seats, launched in early 2017 when United took delivery of its first Boeing 777-300ER. Were so sorry to hear about this. Plus, your own feed of TPG content. . I took a 46-seat J 767 from JFK to SFO recently, and I would never take it eastbound to Europe until Polaris lounges reopen (and maybe not even after they do). The 787-10 will also fly on domestic premium transcontinental routes from Newark to San Francisco and Los Angeles. Full-screen FlightAware TV maps for operators or FBOs. Track your fitness and gym sessions with Polar fitness trackers and sports watches - daily workout guidance and 24/7 heart rate and activity tracking. While the core design elements of the Polaris cabin are identical across the fleet, there are minor variations between different aircraft types due to sizing constraints. For more TPG news delivered each morning to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter. They feature either 30 or 46 Polaris seats laid out in a 1-1-1 configuration. Earn 5X Membership Rewards Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year and earn 5X Membership Rewards Points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel. Appointment charges are applicable. 772PW, 29 complete, grounded/fan blades United has done away with its distinction between first and business class on long-haul international flights, and has instead launched its Polaris-branded product. Uniteds Polaris business class seats are not industry-leading, but a substantial leap forward from the last generation of business class seats, which did not include direct aisle access for passengers seated in window seats and in the case of legacy Uniteds former 777-200s, had eight seats across in business class. Stay up to date with our flight status tools. https://upgradedpoints.com/travel/airlines/how-to-upgrade-on-united-airlines/. When large United States companies choose to send jobs overseas when they could do the work at home it bodes poorly for American jobs going forward. (Enrollment required for select benefits.). Our points-obsessed staff uses a plethora of credit cards on a daily basis. However, with variable pricing, it can sometimes be much worse. Just remember that if you miss the first leg of your trip, they will actually automatically cancel your ticket, invalidating the rest of your trip. , I would count on getting the standard stretched economy seats that you get from United Business. The program uses a hybrid award chart factoring in both the distance you fly and the departure and arrival regions. At this point United says: Polaris Lounges in San Francisco, Newark, and Houston will be "opening in summer 2018" The Polaris Lounge in Los Angeles will be "opening in fall 2018" Polaris Lounges in Washington, London, Hong Kong, and Tokyo Narita, are simply "future locations" Always a fan of flying, it was only natural that Spencer was drawn to finding a way to improve the travel experience. United does not use Gogo Inflight Internet, so you wont be able to use your complimentary Gogo passes provided by The Business Platinum Card from American Express. The seat width is a comfortable 23 inches and the pitch is 75 to 78 inches. Enrollment required. It appears so! REALLY disappointing. If you'd like to add a comment to this article and share your valuable feedback and opinions, please click here to leave your comment. Single galley for 46 passengers yikes! The popular blue gel pillow is now provided to every Polaris passenger rather than stocked in limited quantities onrequest. While the seats are slightly narrower at 20.6 inches, the same principles hold true for seat selection. United's Polaris tracker shows that one 787-8 and three 787-9s are currently flying in the new retrofitted configuration. United States. - Retrofit is from 3-cabin to 2-cabin with direct-aisle-access seats. Seat selection also follows a similar pattern for both 777 variants. Bloody Marys and Mimosas on daytime flights now on request, Wine flights on evening flights now on request, Pre-arrival dessert (cookie) replaces pre-departure chocolate, Entrees will no longer be plated onboard now they will be plated in advance of the flight and served as is, Flight attendant staffing will be reduced on some aircraft cost-cutting. What New International Routes Will United Airlines Announce Tomorrow? The high-J 767s are used for United's new transcontinental flights between New York- JFK and Los Angeles (LAX) and San Francisco (SFO). Went away with little fanfare during Covidtimes. Couples traveling together should pick seats D and G in an odd-numbered row (shown below), so they'll be able to communicate during the flight. In between those two extreme ends of the spectrum (with the 767-300ERs and 777-200ERs), there's a whole lot of gray area. (This targeted offer was independently researched and may not be available to all applicants. Let's use UA881, United's daily nonstop flight from Chicago-O'Hare (ORD) to Tokyo-Narita (NRT) as an example. Elite members with Star Alliance Gold designation on their boarding passes don't get automatic access when flying economy (as they would with regular United Clubs). The first is AwardWallet. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). The information regarding the United ClubBusiness Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer. Polaris is Uniteds flagship premium inflight product. Call Now Send Email. Additional reporting by Zach Honig and Ethan Steinberg. Polaris Update/ Mod Schedule. The fact that UA revealed the then new Polaris product in June 2016 means its been nearly 5 years and aircraft are still waiting to be retrofitted is right on par with the how Berlin Brandenburg airport was rolled out. However, the credit card information that we publish has been written by experts who know these products inside out, and what we recommend is what we would (or already) use ourselves. Check the box for business class and click Search. Sometimes it's worth a large investment to reap the benefits of a great credit card. The colonial #architecture of #mumbai is stunning. Don't have an account? Currently, just 16 planes have the new Polaris seats, including the 14 777-300ERs United's already added to its fleet, along with one 767-300ER that underwent a retrofit this summer, with tail number N644UA, and a second that will resume service any day now. United's widebody planes are intended to operate long-haul international routes (think trans-Pacific and trans-Atlantic flights and longer flights to South America). Its pretty embarrassing. Since then, United has had repeated delays in expanding its new flagship product, but most aircraft are finally equipped with the new seats. Check here before booking an award fare. TPG values it at $1,600. Along with the airline's 13 new 787-10s (out of 14 on order) and 12 787-8s, these are the only planes in the fleet where you're absolutely guaranteed to get the new Polaris seats. Really, Polaris as marketed was always a fiction, even before the pandemic, except for an improved seat and the short-lived lounges, at least those that were actually built. Seldom travelers may not get enough value to warrant the cost. But dear @flysas , next time if I a, Ready for #PIA from #MAN to #JFK -- we will be rac, Another room with a beautiful view #hyattregenc, Enjoying #shanghai with @onemileatatime from the i, From my front gate to my boarding gate in 15 minut, @malaysiaairlines #747 out of retirement and in se, View from my 61st floor room at the beautiful bran. By using and further navigating this website, you accept this. This card comes with a long list of benefits, including access to Centurion Lounges, complimentary elite status with Hilton and Marriott, at least $500 in assorted annual statement credits and so much more. If youre a business owner, see our list of the best Chase business credit cards. Mainline Config by type. And I say that as a 1K for many years, and currently a Plat. United has installed a Polaris Progress Tracker on its webpage, which tracks the progress of aircraft types/routes with Polaris seats and Polaris lounge openings. Please view our advertising policy page for more information. The high annual fee is only worth it if youre taking full advantage of the cards benefits. You can also consistently find the 787-10 on flights from Newark (EWR) to LAX and SFO. United's older configurations always had two seats on the sides. Related: United just hit another major milestone in its Polaris retrofit program. 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