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United Airlines (UAL) Aircraft Order to Aid Fleet Growth

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United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (UAL - Free Report) has placed a massive aircraft order in commercial aviation history. The U.S. carrier ordered 100 new Boeing 787 Dreamliners, with options to purchase 100 more. UAL anticipates getting delivery of the new widebody planes between 2024 and 2032.

United Airlines is also purchasing 100 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, with 44 expected to be delivered between 2024 and 2026 and 56 more MAX aircraft between 2027 and 2028.

UAL expects delivery of almost 700 new narrow and widebody aircraft by 2032, including an average of more than two every week in 2023 and more than three every week in 2024.

These latest aircraft orders reflect United Airlines’ investment in its future fleet and initiatives toward fleet modernization and global growth strategy. Notably, the carrier has been constantly making efforts to improvise the interiors of its existing fleet. More than 90% of UAL’s international wide bodies are equipped with the United Polaris business class seat and United Premium Plus seating. The remaining upgrade for the aircraft should get completed by 2023 summer.

Almost 100 planes of the new widebody order are likely to replace older Boeing 767 and Boeing 777 aircraft, with all 767 aircraft removed from the United Airlines fleet by 2030. This should reduce carbon emissions per seat for the new planes by nearly 25% decrease, as compared to the older planes.

As a result, UAL is likely to get a boost in achieving its target of being 100% green by completely reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 without relying on traditional carbon offsets. To this end, UAL is also encouraging more fuel-efficient aircraft into its fleet and investing in sustainable aviation fuel and other decarbonization technologies.

The 787 Dreamliner comes with better efficiency and flexibility across its extensive network of domestic and international flights and provides a 25% improvement in fuel usage compared with the airplanes it replaces. The 737 MAX unit also brings improved fuel efficiency in the single-aisle market and lessens fuel usage and CO2 emissions by 20% compared to the airplanes it replaces.

United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby, stated, "This order further solidifies our lead and creates new opportunities for our customers, employees and shareholders by accelerating our plan to connect more people to more places around the globe and deliver the best experience in the sky."

Apart from the aforementioned fleet modernization efforts, this aircraft order is also expected to create huge job opportunities for pilots, flight attendants, maintenance technicians and other related airport operations. UAL has hired 15,000 people in 2022 and is on track to add more 15,000 next year.

Kate Gebo, United Airlines EVP of Human Resources and Labor Relations, stated, “We're not just creating jobs – these are long-lasting careers that offer great pay, outstanding benefits and flight privileges to see the world. And the best part is we're actively hiring across every role at the airline."

Zacks Rank and Stocks to Consider

Currently, United Airlines carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Some better-ranked stocks from the broader Zacks Transportation sector are Ryder Systems (R - Free Report) and Teekay Tankers Ltd. (TNK - Free Report) , each currently carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Ryder has an expected earnings growth rate of 67.12% for the current year. R delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 30.13%, on average.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for R’s current-year earnings has improved 6.9% over the past 90 days. Shares of R have gained 4.7% over the past year.

Teekay Tankers has an expected earnings growth rate of 214.91% for the current year. TNK delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 42.23%, on average. Teekay Tankers has a long-term expected growth rate of 3%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for TNK’s current-year earnings has improved 95% over the past 90 days. Shares of TNK have soared 176.8% over the past year.


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