United follows Delta’s lead, removes all-coach jets from NYC routes
If the New York City area is in your travel plans, your flight might've just been upgraded.
Over the weekend, United made good on its promise to remove its smallest jets from nearly all of its New York City routes. Beginning in late October, you won't find a single-cabin regional aircraft flying from United's Newark hub, as seen in Cirium timetables and later confirmed by the airline.
United's move follows on the heels of Delta making a similar adjustment to its New York City strategy.
In recent years, the Atlanta-based airline has been swapping its all-economy regional jets in favor of larger planes with a dedicated first-class cabin in LaGuardia, JFK and Newark. That culminated over the Fourth of July weekend when Delta removed the last of its single-cabin jets, the CRJ200, from JFK.
Delta's LaGuardia hub hasn't been served by an all-economy plane since April 2020, and Newark hasn't seen one since June 2018, according to Cirium schedules.
For United, beefing up its New York area presence means that it's removing the Embraer 145 (E145), a 50-seat regional jet outfitted in a 1-2 coach configuration with just six extra-legroom Economy Plus seats.
Instead of the E145, United's swapping in the CRJ550, a re-certified variant of the Bombardier CRJ700 that's outfitted in a posh 50-seat, two-cabin configuration, with a walk-up bar for first-class passengers and two large onboard closets to store full-sized carry-on bags.
Though both the E145 and CRJ550 feature the same number of seats, the latter is outfitted in a premium heavy configuration — 10 first-class recliners, 20 extra-legroom coach seats and 20 standard economy seats — in a much larger and more comfortable airframe.
It's worth noting that while United is completely removing single-cabin jets from Newark, it still has some of these planes on its schedule for its LaGuardia-Washington/Dulles (IAD) route.
According to United spokesperson Robert Einhorn, this is part of a larger plan to boost Newark flying, as shared in the following statement:
United expects to resume its full schedule of flights out of Newark by November 2021 when the FAA slot waiver period ends. The airline is already the leading carrier from Newark — United's largest global gateway — with 430 daily flights scheduled. In flying the full schedule, United plans to eliminate smaller, single-class regional jets and expects 100% of Newark departures to be on dual-class aircraft, including the 737 MAX and the airline's new, dual-class 50-seat CRJ-550 jet maximizing customer choice and comfort.
Delta did not comment on its upgauge in New York.
In recent months, the Big 3 U.S. airlines have talked about retiring their all-economy regional jets, and now they're following through.
In September 2020, Delta announced that it would retire all CRJ200s — its only all-coach regional jet — by December 2023. United, on the other hand, recently unveiled its plans to retire more than 200 single-cabin planes by 2026 as part of its "United Next" strategy.
American Airlines has been making significant progress on sending these planes to the boneyard as well. In April 2020, AA retired the CRJ200, along with four other aircraft types. Just this May, the Fort Worth-based carrier bid farewell to the Embraer 140, leaving the E145 as the carrier's only all-coach jet.
As the major U.S. carriers retire the single-cabin planes, the first major market to benefit from the upgauge has been New York.
When American Airlines and JetBlue announced their industry-jolting Northeast Alliance, one of the core selling points was that it would result in upgrading all New York City-area routes with larger planes equipped with first-class cabins.
Now, Delta and United are following in AA's footsteps.
Travelers are ultimately the winners: if you're flying through New York, expect larger planes with dedicated first-class cabins.
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| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
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Why We Chose It
There’s a lot to love about the Amex Gold. It’s a fan favorite thanks to its fantastic bonus-earning rates at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets. If you’re hitting the skies soon, you’ll also earn bonus Membership Rewards points on travel. Paired with up to $120 in Uber Cash annually (for U.S. Uber rides or Uber Eats orders, card must be added to Uber app and you can redeem with any Amex card), up to $120 in annual dining statement credits to be used with eligible partners, an up to $84 Dunkin’ credit each year at U.S. Dunkin Donuts and an up to $100 Resy credit annually, there’s no reason that foodies shouldn’t add the Amex Gold to their wallet. These benefits alone are worth more than $400, which offsets the $325 annual fee on the Amex Gold card. Enrollment is required for select benefits. (Partner offer)Pros
- 4 points per dollar spent on dining at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (on the first $50,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter and $25,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter, respectively)
- 3 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with the airline or with amextravel.com
- Packed with credits foodies will enjoy
- Solid welcome bonus
Cons
- Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
- Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
- You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
- $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an American Express Card for your transaction. That’s up to $120 Uber Cash annually. Plus, after using your Uber Cash, use your Card to earn 4X Membership Rewards® points for Uber Eats purchases made with restaurants or U.S. supermarkets. Point caps and terms apply.
- $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations. Enrollment is required to receive this benefit.
- $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
- $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
- Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges* with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. *Eligible charges vary by property.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- Annual Fee is $325.
- Terms Apply.