United Polaris Doors, EWR Improvements, SFO Parallel Landings, and More Airline News

This week, we’ve got lots of business-class focused news, including updates from American, United, and SWISS. We’ll also take a look some important changes regarding operations and safety at Newark (EWR) and SFO, as well as more aircraft and route-focussed news KLM, Qantas, and United.

United Gets Certification for Polaris Doors on New Boeing 787-9s

Polaris passengers flying one of United’s new Boeing 787-9s can now close their privacy doors during flight. United started flying the new jets before it received final certification, so until now the new Elevated Polaris seats have been locked open.

It shouldn’t be long before United’s entire subfleet of 10 Boeing 787-9Ps is certified to fly with the doors closed in Polaris.

American Takes Delivery of First Retrofitted Boeing 777-300

Following on from the news in last week’s roundup about American‘s retrofitted Boeing 777s, we can now confirm that the first fully-refurished plane has arrived back in the U.S.

The aircraft registered N718AN landed in Dallas (DFW) on Thursday August 13 after an almost-15-hour flight from Hong Kong. We’ll be back with a more detailed update on this once we have cabin images and know when the aircraft will start flying passengers.

United Starting a Seasonal Domestic Route for Winter Vacations

Starting February 13, 2027, United will operate a Saturday-only service between Boston (BOS) and Jackson Hole (JAC).

It will be operated by the airline’s fleet of Boeing 737-700 jets and end after just 4 weeks on March 20, 2027.

SFO’s Parallel Landing Ban Gets Rolled Back Slightly

Back in March, the FAA passed a restriction of hourly arrivals from 54 to 36 for safety reasons, so San Francisco‘s famous parallel landings all but disappeared. To ease capacity issues, the FAA has now increased hourly landings to 42. When visibility permits, this will allow parallel landings to return, albeit in a staggered formation.

Newark Airport Radar Safety Improvements

The delays and safety concerns of summer 2025 at Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) should never be repeated. New technology, in the form of a Surface Movement Radar (SMR), has been unveiled to replace the decades-old radar that air traffic controllers were forced to rely on. The new SMR is part of a wider project to improve working conditions for air traffic controlers, in turn making operations at EWR safer and more punctual.

KLM Ending Generous Intra-European Economy Service

KLM is ditching its complimentary sandwich and alcohol service on some flights from October. As the last European full-service carrier to offer more than just a small snack and a bottle of water (at most) on intra-European flights, it’s truly the end of an era.

While soft drinks and a small stroopwaffel snack will remain, the Dutch national carrier is introducing a new buy onboard menu for more substantial food and alcohol.

Qantas Airbus A321XLR International Flight Delay

Qantas‘ latest schedule update shows that its growing fleet of new Airbus A321XLRs won’t start flying internationally until February 1, 2027. The inital inaugural flight from Brisbane (BNE) to Manila (MNL) was planned for October 25, 2026. Qantas’ current fleet of Airbus A321XLRs have recliner seats in business class, while future iterations will feature lie-flat seats, improving comfort for premium passengers on some short haul international routes.

SWISS Starts Airbus A330-300 Cabin Upgrades

The SWISS Senses cabin that debuted on the airline’s brand-new Airbus A350s in November 2025 is coming to more aircraft. The first of the A330-300 fleet is currently in Hong Kong, where it’s undergoing a top-to-tail upgrade. Once back in the air, likely Q1 or Q2 next year, the jets will have 5 few first class seats, 2 fewer business class seats, a new premium economy cabin with 28 seats, and 32 fewer seats in economy.

The upgrade project should significantly improve U.S.-based travelers’ experiences, as the aircraft operates several of SWISS’ U.S. routes from Geneva (GVA) and Zurich (ZRH).

Final Thoughts

It’s always great news in the frequent flyer world when airlines upgrade their aircraft, especially the premium cabins. United’s new Polaris is at the top of my list. On a more serious note, Newark and San Francisco are making important changes for safety — the first priority for all airlines and airports.