United Airlines ordered the Boeing 737 Max 10 aircraft years ago with plans for premium seating configurations and transcontinental service, but the plane’s certification has significantly lagged expectations. In 2018, United’s CEO Scott Kirby outlined ambitious plans for the aircraft at an aviation conference, with initial expectations for the plane to enter service in 2020. However, Boeing’s certification process has faced substantial delays due to required anti-icing system redesigns and the manufacturer’s broader struggles with safety and manufacturing issues.
As a result of the protracted delays, hundreds of lie-flat premium seats ordered specifically for the 737 Max 10 have remained in storage with no clear near-term use. Kirby acknowledged the situation in a recent interview, noting the specialized seats cannot be installed on other aircraft models. United has not yet disclosed the specific interior configuration it will employ for the Max 10 or identified which routes will be served by the aircraft.
Meanwhile, United adapted to Boeing’s delays by retrofitting a subset of its Airbus A321neo aircraft with premium seating, branding this configured fleet the “Coastliner” for transcontinental operations. The company introduced 20 Polaris suites along with premium economy and other new seat types on these planes. However, the different dimensions and specifications of Boeing and Airbus aircraft complicate United’s planning, as seats and configurations designed for one aircraft cannot be easily transferred to the other.
United currently has 167 Boeing 737 Max 10 aircraft on order and expects to receive the first deliveries in summer 2027. Meanwhile, Boeing recently won federal approval for the smaller 737 Max 7 model, with Southwest Airlines planning to operate the aircraft beginning in the first half of 2027, signaling progress toward certification of the larger Max 10 variant that United is awaiting.
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