Overview
- United announced on July 14 that it will offer a new Economy Plus option on its Airbus A321XLR that turns the middle seat into a permanently fixed, leather-like shared table with two cup indents.
- The seats keep the three inches of extra legroom already in Economy Plus and give window and aisle passengers more elbow room through the open middle-seat design.
- Every one of United’s 50 A321XLRs will include one special row with the feature, the airline said, and tickets for the option will go on sale later in 2026 as the jets enter domestic service this fall and international service by early 2027.
- Reporters and analysts note the configuration helps the aircraft meet a 150-seat certification threshold that affects minimum flight attendant staffing and say United can monetize those otherwise blocked middle seats by selling the two-seat upgrade.
- The product is limited to four seats per plane, pricing and booking rules for two-seat parties are not yet disclosed, and the change follows other United economy upgrades and echoes short-haul blocked-middle practices used by some European and low-cost carriers.