NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. — United Airlines appears to be ready to make another major purchase of the jet airliner that's manufactured in South Carolina.
The company announced they've secured new options for up to 50 of the Boeing 787 Dreamliners. Those aircraft are made at Boeing's production facility in North Charleston, South Carolina.
The company also announced confirmed orders mix of 787-9s and Airbus 321neos
"We're building a bright future at United and this order takes our already successful United Next plan into the next decade and beyond," said United CEO Scott Kirby. "Our planning and focus on the long term have helped us surge past other airlines that stood still. I'm convinced our strategy is the right one as we continue to add new, larger aircraft to take full advantage of our growing flying opportunities both internationally and domestically."
The move is part of the company's long-term strategy to start flying larger planes with more available seats on the same routes it does now. United believes that will increase connectivity on all flights.
Overall, the company plans to take delivery of about 800 new aircraft between this year and the end of 2032.
The North Charleston facility opened in 2010 and worked as part of the 787 assembly process with a Boeing plan in Everett, Washington. However, in 2020, Boeing announced plans to move all remaining work on the Dreamliner. to South Carolina, and in 2021 completed the move.
