United To Add 30 E175s to Express Network
United Airlines plans to begin populating its regional network with Embraer E175s next year. (Image: United Airlines)
United Airlines plans to begin populating its regional network with Embraer E175s next year. (Image: United Airlines)

United Airlines has moved to exploit newfound freedom to alter the composition of its regional jet network with a tentative deal to add 30 new Embraer E175s to the United Express fleet. Plans call for the 76-seat airplanes—configured to carry 12 passengers in first class, 16 in so-called Economy Plus and 48 in standard economy—to replace some of the 50-seat regional jets in the United Express fleet, a majority of which consist of Embraer ERJ-145s operated by former Continental Express carrier ExpressJet. United expects deliveries to run from next year to 2015, but it hasn’t revealed which partner or partners it has chosen to fly the airplanes.