Where United Airlines Is Flying Its Very Low-Capacity 167-Seat Boeing 767s

United Airlines is the world’s second-largest operator of passenger Boeing 767s. According to ch-aviation, it has 53 of them, although not all are active. Some 37 are 767-300ERs, of which 24 have the very high-premium, low-capacity, 167-seat configuration.

The 167-seater is by far the Star Alliance member’s lowest-capacity widebody equipment. There are 46 Polaris suites (1-1-1), 22 Premium Plus recliners (2-2-2; 38″ pitch), 43 seats in Economy Plus (2-3-2; 34″), and just 56 seats in regular economy (2-3-2; mainly 31″). The contrast with Emirates’ 615-seat Airbus A380s could barely be starker.

United Has 11 Routes On The 167-Seat 767

Credit: GCMap

Let’s focus on January 1 to March 28, 2026, with March 28 being the final day of the northern aviation winter based on IATA slot seasons. In this period, the latest OAG data shows that United plans an average of 17 daily departures from the US on its 167-seaters. Compared to the equivalent period in 2025, outbound services have increased from an average of 15 daily services.

In those 87 days, United plans 11 routes on its very low-capacity frames. It will, of course, vary somewhat at other times of the year. Compared to the same period in 2025, the configuration will be flown from Chicago O’Hare to Dublin and Newark to Munich. However, it has ceased being used from Washington Dulles to London Heathrow and Zurich.

Only one third of this layout’s seats are in bog-standard economy. As the table shows, they are obviously used in high-yielding transatlantic markets with a sufficient number of passengers willing to pay enough to cover the costs of having such low capacity. Nearly six in ten flights are to London Heathrow, renowned for its high-yielding nature.

United’s Aircraft Used To Have More Seats

Credit: Flickr

Nowadays, airlines often add more seats to their aircraft. While this means the weight increases, it also means it produces more output (available seat miles/kilometers) over which to spread operating costs. This densification results in a lower seat-mile cost and a more cost-competitive machine.

United took the reverse approach. It removed seats on some of its 767-300ERs, with capacity falling from 214 seats to just 167. The first frame with that number rolled out in 2019. It became a much more premium subfleet. While the lighter weight meant that trip costs fell, lower output meant seat-mile costs increased. Thus, this changed where the aircraft flew.

The economic rationale was that United would gain sufficiently high fares to achieve meaningfully higher yields from being much more premium-configured. That’s why they’re particularly deployed to Heathrow, Geneva, and Zurich. Of course, having just 56 main cabin seats—even fewer than on JetBlue’s A321LRs—means there’s far less need to compete intensively for the bottom of the market, which improves its overall revenue mix and yields.

The 167-Seater’s Only Route To Africa

Credit: United Airlines

Notice Newark to Marrakech in the table. The route to the ever-popular tourist destination in Morocco commenced in October 2024, becoming the first scheduled service from the US (Delta has since started Atlanta-Marrakech). It became United’s first African route on the 167-seat Boeing twin-aisle.

This route is quite interesting, as it is relatively lower-yielding than most of the other markets mentioned in the table. While completely different markets, and thus perhaps an unfair comparison, Newark-Zurich covers 8% more distance than Newark-Marrakech, but the average fare was 69% higher. Perhaps it’s using the 167-seater more for its low capacity, but that wouldn’t really make much sense.

United serves Marrakech during the winter. According to US Department of Transportation data for October 2024 to March 2025, 72.3% of seats were filled, against 81.7% for all of its transatlantic markets from Newark. Of course, the loads in each of its cabins are unknown; now that’d be very interesting to know. Of course, it was a brand-new market and would have significant financial incentives and perhaps other risk-sharing agreements.