United adds A321XLR as possible 757 replacement

United has added the possible long-range Airbus "A321XLR" to its list of replacement options for some of its aging Boeing 757s, as it aims to replace the middle-of-the-market portion of its fleet in the next decade. The carrier estimates a need for 30-40 mid-market aircraft to replace both 757s and Boeing 767s from the mid-2020s, United president Scott Kirby said in a video of a San Francisco town hall held at the end of March that was viewed by FlightGlobal. The balance of its 757 and 767 fleet, which Cirium's Fleets Analyzer shows includes 127 aircraft, can be replaced by Boeing 737 Max 10 and Boeing 787-8 aircraft, he says. Another option is sub-optimising the fleet and replacing all of its 757 and 767s with 737 Max and 787s, adds Kirby. "We feel really good about the bulk of the narrowbody, the bulk of the widebody fleet," says Kirby. "That 30 to 40 airplanes for 757, 767 replacements we don't have a good answer for."<br/>