United Airways is respiratory new life into its solely nonmainland U.S. hub.
The airline introduced this week that it will substitute the growing old Boeing 737-800 fleet presently stationed at its Antonio B. Gained Pat Worldwide Airport (GUM) hub with new Boeing 737 MAX 8 plane. United will deploy 10 MAX 8 jets in Guam starting in February 2026.
For these based mostly within the mainland, United’s MAX 8 plane is fairly commonplace. The airline has 122 of them in its fleet, and all of them, together with those that’ll be stationed in Guam, function the airline’s signature inside.
This consists of seatback TVs at each seat, a much bigger Financial system Plus extra-legroom part, Bluetooth connectivity for wi-fi headphones, energy shops, quicker Wi-Fi and larger overhead bins. Whereas United’s signature inside has been a giant improve over the outdated product, it will be an much more welcome improve in Guam, the place United presently stations a few of its oldest Boeing 737s.
Apparently, as a result of United serves a bunch of distant locations from Guam, the airline will set up a novel LOPA, or “format of passenger lodging” (seat format), on its Guam-based MAX jets. The planes could have as much as 166 seats, together with as much as 16 first-class recliners. Nonetheless, the airline will typically block among the seats as a crew relaxation on longer flights, and when wanted, the entrance rows of Financial system Plus seats may be collapsed to accommodate a medical stretcher for sufferers needing medevac transport.
United says that Wi-Fi can be accessible for buy on Guam-based 737s, but it surely stopped wanting sharing which supplier it will set up on the outset. Proper now, mainland-based MAX 8 jets function Viasat connectivity, however Viasat doubtless would not present protection in every single place the 737s fly from Guam. Whereas United says it should finally deploy Starlink on these jets, the interim supplier continues to be a little bit of a thriller.
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The Guam-based 737 MAX 8 plane will serve all narrow-body routes operated from GUM and people who function as fifth-freedom tag flights, comparable to from Tokyo’s Narita Worldwide Airport (NRT) to Cebu within the Philippines, Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia, Saipan within the Northern Mariana Islands, Kaohsiung in Taiwan, and Palau.
Along with the plane upgrades, United will modernize the airport expertise in Guam with brand-new, latest-generation check-in kiosks, that are as much as 55% quicker than the present ones.
The foyer space at GUM can be being reconfigured with the check-in kiosks staged in a two-step configuration to scale back congestion and wait occasions. Building within the terminal is anticipated to be full by mid-October.
Moreover, United will retime its departures from Saipan for flyers trying to get to Honolulu and past. Efficient from Dec. 1, 2025, to March 27, 2026, flights from Saipan to Guam will depart roughly 4 hours earlier at 6 a.m., with a 55-minute connection in Guam, making a same-day connection to Honolulu. The retimed flights will depart Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
“Our funding in new plane and a whole refresh of our foyer in Guam will ship the premium expertise our clients anticipate of United and is a part of our broader dedication to elevating the client expertise for our clients in Guam and the broader Pacific area,” mentioned David Kinzelman, United’s chief buyer officer, in an announcement. “For purchasers with connecting flights to or from the mainland U.S., these investments will imply a constant, seamless expertise from check-in to touchdown.”
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