United Airlines Holdings Inc. will add 10 destinations in Europe and Asia to its network next year, deploying Airbus SE’s new long-range narrow-body planes to help cash in on demand from Americans looking overseas for leisure.
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The carrier will fly the A321XLR planes from its Newark, New Jersey, hub to locations including Luxembourg and Marseille, as well as Ibiza and Valencia in Spain, according to a statement.
Other additions include nonstop service between San Francisco and Okinawa, Japan, and a flight from Washington Dulles International Airport to Toulouse in southern France — where Airbus has its headquarters.
The moves make up the “largest international network expansion in company history,” United said in its statement. The new trips will begin as early as March.
“Our growth rate internationally is going to be significantly higher than domestic,” Chief Executive Officer Scott Kirby said during an interview with Bloomberg Television. “We really haven’t seen any cracks in demand.”
Regarding jet fuel, Kirby said he expects prices to “probably trend down from here.” However, he doesn’t believe they’ll return the levels seen at the beginning of 2026.
“I think they’re going to be elevated for at least another year,” he said.
United is seeking to differentiate itself by boosting flights to secondary cities and popular tourist destinations that no other US airline currently serves.
The airline is building its business around international networks, higher-spending travelers and lucrative loyalty programs. Part of the expansion also includes adding flights to Paris, Milan and Osaka.
The A321XLR maintains the design specifications of a narrow-body aircraft but has the capabilities of a long-range plane able to fly as far as 4,700 nautical miles, or about 11 hours. That’s almost a fifth farther than the standard A321neo, while burning less fuel than larger widebody jets.
Rival American Airlines Group Inc. already flies the XLR, which stands for “extra long range.”
United is replacing its aging Boeing Co. 757 fleet with the newer, more efficient planes. The carrier is also a big buyer of Boeing’s 737-10, but those narrow-body jets have yet to be certified by the US Federal Aviation Administration. The manufacturer expects that to happen later this year.
“This push is so big this year because Boeing and Airbus have started to catch up on our deliveries,” Kirby said. “We would have started some of these routes earlier if we’d had the aircraft.”
United will outfit its XLRs with lie-flat business class seats, and the middle seat in certain Economy Plus rows will be blocked off to create a roomier experience for passengers, Quayle said.
The carrier will start flying the Airbus model on some domestic routes next month before using it on international routes starting Dec. 1.
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