Oct 25, 2019

United's new regional jet

United's new regional jets have more legroom and self-serve snacks in first class. Photo: Joann Muller

At Chicago's O'Hare airport this week, I got a sneak peek at United Airlines' new Bombardier CRJ-550 regional jet going into service this weekend.

Why it matters: By designing its own plane, United aims to close an amenities gap for short-hop flights to try to get more business travelers in medium-sized cities like Cincinnati, St. Louis and Madison.

  • Most of the 300+ regional jets United currently flies aren't appealing for corporate travelers, United Vice President Ankit Gupta tells me, because there's no premium first class cabin and often no WiFi.

Details: The new plane looks like the 70-seat regional workhorse CRJ-700, but United removed 20 seats to provide more comfort and storage.

  • It includes 10 seats in the first class cabin, where passengers have access to a self-service beverage and snack station and four luggage closets.
  • Passengers in economy and economy-plus also have more legroom and storage for their luggage, along with WiFi service.

The bottom line, says Gupta: "We're trying to attract the corporate customer who otherwise wouldn't fly with us."

  • United expects to have 54 of the new planes in service by mid-2020.

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Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

  1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 3 a.m. ET: 5,410,228 — Total deaths: 345,105 — Total recoveries — 2,169,005 — Map.
  2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 3 a.m. ET: 1,643,499 — Total deaths: 97,722 — Total recoveries: 366,736 — Total tested: 14,163,915 — Map.
  3. World: White House announces travel restrictions on Brazil, coronavirus hotspot in Southern Hemisphere — Over 100 coronavirus cases in Germany tied to single day of church services — Boris Johnson backs top aide amid reports that he broke U.K. lockdown while exhibiting symptoms.
  4. Public health: Officials are urging Americans to wear masks headed into Memorial Day weekend — Report finds "little evidence" coronavirus under control in most states — Hurricanes, wildfires, the flu could strain COVID-19 response
  5. Economy: White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett says it's possible the unemployment rate could still be in double digits by November's election — Public employees brace for layoffs.
  6. Federal government: Trump attacks a Columbia University study that suggests earlier lockdown could have saved 36,000 American lives.
  7. What should I do? Hydroxychloroquine questions answered — Traveling, asthma, dishes, disinfectants and being contagious — Masks, lending books and self-isolating — Exercise, laundry, what counts as soap — Pets, moving and personal health — Answers about the virus from Axios experts — What to know about social distancing — How to minimize your risk.
  8. Other resources: CDC on how to avoid the virus, what to do if you get it, the right mask to wear.

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The CDC is warning of potentially "aggressive rodent behavior" amid a rise in reports of rat activity in several areas, as the animals search further for food while Americans stay home more during the coronavirus pandemic.

By the numbers: More than 97,700 people have died from COVID-19 and over 1.6 million have tested positive in the U.S. Over 366,700 Americans have recovered and more than 14.1 million tests have been conducted.

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Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins; Map: Axios Visuals

Japan's economy minister outlined plans on Monday to end the nationwide state of emergency as the number of new novel coronavirus cases continues to decline to fewer than 50 a day, per Bloomberg. Japan has reported 16,550 cases and 820 deaths.

By the numbers: Over 5.4 million people have tested positive for the virus as of Monday, and more than 2.1 million have recovered. The U.S. has reported the most cases in the world (over 1.6 million from 13.7 million tests). The U.K. is reporting over 36,800 deaths from the coronavirus — the most fatalities outside the U.S.

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