United Airlines 'on track' to debut fancy new regional jet in December
Who's ready for first class on United Airlines's smallest regional jet?
The first Mitsubishi CRJ-450, a premium variant of the CRJ-200, is "on track" to begin carrying passengers by the end of the year. That's according to Andrew Nocella, United's chief commercial officer, who discussed the arrival of the CRJ-450 on the sidelines of the brand-new E Concourse at Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) on Monday.
The plane will debut at the airline's Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) hub, he added.
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"It'll be very exciting and it's really critical that we connect big cities to little cities, and that's what the CRJ-450 allows us to do," said Nocella.
Nocella did not say where the CRJ-450 could fly from ORD but it is widely expected to serve some of the smallest cities in United's network, for example Akron-Canton, Ohio, or Fort Wayne, Indiana.
United unveiled the CRJ-450 in March in an effort to expand its premium offerings to smaller markets. Instead of the usual 50 economy seats on the CRJ-200, the 450 has seven first-class, 16 extra-legroom economy and 18 economy seats — for a total of 41 — a luggage closet for carry ons and high-speed Starlink inflight WiFi.
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The CRJ-450 is essentially a premium overhaul to the standard CRJ-200 that has been a workhorse of regional flying for much of this centutry. Passengers have routinely disliked the CRJ-200 for being small and cramped, an experience United hopes to improve with the less-dense CRJ-450 variant.
The plane is similar to the CRJ-550, a 50-seat premium variant of the CRJ-700 that typcially seats around 70 passengers. United debuted the CRJ-550 in 2019.
The CRJ-450 is the smallest plane in United's premium airplane menu. Larger offerings include the Airbus A321neo "Coastliner" for premium domestic routes, the A321XLR for long-haul routes and up to the Boeing 787-9s with the "elevated" interior that features the new Polaris Studio in business class.
"We have realized that the demand for premium was much higher than we ever knew," United CEO Scott Kirby, said in March. "It's like we're finally creating supply to meet the demand for premium."
The first CRJ-450s are in the works
United regional affiliate SkyWest Airlines will operate the first 40 CRJ-450s under the United Express brand. The first two CRJ-200s are undergoing the necessary modifications and certification at one of the Utah-based regional carrier's maintenance facilities, SkyWest President Wade Steel said at the end of October.
"The first airplanes just take longer naturally just because you're working through the first-time issues," he explained. Subsequent CRJ-200 conversions will take 2 to 3 weeks.
Steel, and SkyWest CEO Chip Childs, emphasized that the first CRJ-450s would enter service with United by the end of the year despite at the time having only about eight weeks left in 2026.
Both executives were bullish on the opportunity for the CRJ-450. Steel estimated demand for around 100 aircraft in the coming years as major airlines seek to increase premium offerings across their fleets.
"Putting first class seats on a CRJ-200 in a very good LOPA [Layout of Passenger Accommodation] with an outstanding interior is a very valuable aircraft," said Steel
Delta Air Lines, for example, joined United in offering the CRJ-550 on regional routes in 2024. SkyWest flies the CRJ-550 for Delta.
American Airlines is the only major U.S. carrier not offering the CRJ-550. However, the airline can fly more larger regional jets, particularly the Embraer E175, than either Delta or United under a more lenient contract with its pilots.
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