United Airlines Unveils Premium-Heavy Boeing 787-9 Service from San Francisco to Sydney
United Airlines is set to introduce its premium-heavy Boeing 787-9 on flights between San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport (SYD) from December 2026.
The Elevated 787-9 has a substantially different cabin configuration than the standard 787-9, with 64 business-class seats, 35 premium economy seats, and 123 economy seats. This is compared to the standard configuration's 48 Polaris business-class seats, 21 premium economy seats, and 188 economy seats.
The deployment of the Elevated 787-9 on this route is part of United's broader strategy of increasing premium capacity on international services. The airline has already deployed the configuration from San Francisco to destinations including London Heathrow, Singapore, and Seoul, while additional routes are scheduled to receive the aircraft.