My family of four flew on a United Airlines 787-9 in Polaris business class from Denver to London, an enjoyable flight marked by excellent service and good rest. For better or for worse (and I’d say mostly for better), United offers a consistent longhaul product.
United Airlines 787-9 Business Class Review (DEN-LHR)
We spent some time in the Denver United Club before the flight…I encouraged the kids to eat so that they could maximize sleep onboard, but I know my kids were ecstatic about flying business class for one reason: the ice cream sundae.
Boarding began at 7:40 pm and despite being at the peak of summer, the flight was not full and there were even a couple of business class seats that went out unoccupied. I deliberately chose the 8:20 pm departure because it positioned us to fly around bedtime, hopefully maximizing our sleep onboard.
United Airlines 262
Denver (DEN) – London (LHR)
Wednesday, July 31
Depart: 8:20 PM
Arrive: 12:20 PM+1
Duration: 9hr, 00min
Distance: 4,670 miles
Aircraft: Boeing 787-9
Seat: 9A, 10A, 11A, 12A (Business Class)
I had to crack up at the flight attendant who greeted us. She had her United-issued iphone and was confirming meal orders and said, “Oh, Klint, Klint, Klint, and Klint. You’ve taken over the cabin! Welcome onboard!”
United Airlines 787-9 Business Class Seat
The United 787-9 has 48 seats in business class, split into two cabins with lavatories and galley between them. United’s Polaris seat is based on Safran Optima platform, with four-across seating in a 1-2-1 configuration. Every seat has direct aisle access. Each seat converts into a 6′-6″ lie-flat bed.
My foot cushion had seen better days…it was taped togehter.
There was also an old (used) amenity kit left in the little alcove below the screen…
Bedding remains excellent in Polaris, with a large pillow, cooling gel pillow, duvet, and day blanket. Matress pads are available on request and are now loaded at 100%, meaning there is one for everyone (i.e. you no longer have to get one immediately upon boarding or risk not getting one at all).
Unfortunately, we were a victim of heavy tailwinds, meaning our 9-hour flight turned out to be closer to 7.5 hours. So by the dinner service was complete, there were less than six hours left in the flight. I went to bed intending to skip breakfast and sleep till we began our descent into London, but did not sleep well on this flight…though it wasn’t the bedding or cabin temperature (the rest of my family slept well).
United Airlines 787-9 Business Class Food + Drink
Dinner was served after takeoff. Menus were presented at each seat, but I had pre-ordered dinner for all of us: fish for me, steak for Heidi, noodles for Augustine, and a gluten-free meal for Claire Marie (as I did last year). Claire Marie is (thankfully) not gluten intolerant, but United’s gluten-free meal has been a plain chicken breast for years and that works best for the Kleine Madame (as my father-in-law calls her).
I’ll note United continues to improve the beverage selection onboard and has upgraded the wine and Champagne since my flihgt and now offers cocktails as well.
Service began with a hot towel followed by warmed mixed nuts and a choice of beverage. I drank San Pellegrino sparkling water on this flight.
United once again serves meals in courses and first came the tray with a baby red oak leaf arugula salad with mozzarella. artichokes, and roasted red tomatoes and a choice of appetizer between smoked duck (with parsnip purée and grilled Granny Smith apple wedges) or Burrata (with cracked black pepper, cherry tomatoes, basil, frisée, and balsamic glaze). Garlic bread too.
My fish (Seared turbot with asparagus, sauteed mushrooms, roasted potatoes, sun-aried tomatoes and lemon caper sauce) was fine…not great, not bad, but edible (which is about what I expect when I fly United).
Claire Marie enjoyed her chicken breast…
Augustine loved his Spicy chicken with udon noodles, stir-fried vegetables and Thai-style coconut-ginger sauce.
(I think he made the best choice!)
And Heidi liked her seared flat-iron steak (with thyme roasted red bliss potato wedges, roasted carrots, zucchini, and mushroom gravy).
Of course, the highlight for my kids was the ice cream sundae for dessert.
Although I tried to sleep, I was awake for breakfast. Since I always order eggs and wasn’t hungry, I ordered banana bread pudding with fried golden raisins and vanilla creme anglaise…heart attack on a plate, but admittedly delicious.
United’s catering is improving, but still has a way to go. These days, the concern is more about quality and taste than quantity…you will never go hungry on a United longhaul flight.
United Airlines 787-9 Business Class IFE + Wi-Fi
United’s IFE library is available both on the screen and at no cost on your mobile device or tablet via the in-flight intranet network. Hundreds of movies, TV shows, games, and podcasts were available.
My kids certainly enjoyed the screens…
My initial headphones had a bent plug, but were quickly replaced.
Wi-Fi was available onboard for purchase ($19.99 for a flight pass), but I passed due to the late hour and tried to relax a bit while tending to the kids.
I happened to look out the window as we were approaching Heathrow and saw we were flying directly over Windsor Castle. I wish I had pulled out my camera a few seconds earlier!
United Airlines 787-9 Business Class Service
The crew was very friendly on this flight and that is always appreciated. With the exception of one bad flight last year from Paris to San Francisco, I’ve enjoyed consistently good service on United and this flight was no exception.
I think US flight attendants either look at kids with skepticism or compassion (and to be clear, the skepticism is often warranted!) but I particularly appreciated how compassionate the flight attendants were on this flight toward my kids.
We are past the infant stage and both kids are well-behaved on a plane, but it was nice that the flight attendants knelt down and talked to my chidlren. Sometimes flight attendants only talk to my children via me or my wife, which I understand, but
United Airlines 787-9 Business Class Lavatory
The 787-9 Polaris cabin features one lavatory between the two cabin areas and two in the front of the aircraft (one of those two in the front are sometimes reserved for crew use and I did not venture up on this flight). Lavatories feature hydrating mist and hand creme from Therabody.
On this flight, the drain in one lavatory was out of order…that appeared to be an issue before takeoff.
United Airlines 787-9 Business Class Amenity Kit
I don’t generally touch the amenity kits on United, not because they are bad, but because I have so many and I don’t want to waste them…they are re-used if they remain sealed.
On this flight, United was still using the Therabody-branded fanny packs.
From a previous flight, contents included socks, eyeshade, tissues, earplugs, dental kit, pen, and skin products from Therabody:
United Airlines 787-9 Business Class – LHR Arrivals Lounge
After arriving in LHR, we headed to the Arrivals Lounge (open until 2:00 pm) to shower and have a cup of coffee. We were too late for the a la carte menu, but this is a nice value-add to those arriving in London in United Polaris (Star Gold passengers traveling in economy or premium economy do not have access).
CONCLUSION
In short, the Polaris product has evolved, but it is still largely the same as it has been for years. While not industry-leading, it is solid, with particularly excellent bedding. This flight had excellent service as well. I scored an incredible deal on this flight and was ecstatic that we could occupy the rear cabin, sleep (somewhat) well, and arrive in London semi-coherent.
Tomorrow, this same flight will be reviewed from the perspective of 7-year-old Augustine. Stay tuned!
In case you want to see what has changed and what has not, here’s a review of our United flight to London from last year.
> Read More: Traveling In United Airlines Polaris Business Class With My Family, A 787-9 Flight Review
I was amused that you weren’t happy about the flight arriving 1 1/2 hours early, but I understand your reasons.
When that happens to me, I’m always concerned the gates are occupied and ground-ops aren’t ready for our aircraft so there’s a long post-flight tarmac delay.
My ideal flight time is 12 hours. Gives me 9 hours to rest.
Didn’t you write about Augustine and ice cream not being an agreeable combination?
He had one sundae on this flight…9 ice cream bars in the Saudia lounge!
12:20 am arrival what VIP onboard justifies breaking the LHR curfew???
Yours truly! 😉
According to seatguru.com, their 787 Polaris seat is only 20.5″ wide, which is just too narrow, compared
to econ. plus & econ. seat width of only 17.3″ ; they jammed to many bus. class seats into that cabin; a few
of the 787 layouts have 22″ width in bus. 2-2-2 is nice, but not enough privacy. I think Delta’s seats are wider.
https://seatguru.com/airlines/United_Airlines/United_Airlines_UA_Boeing_787-9_B.php
What time did they turn the lights on? My biggest annoyance on overnight flights is when they turn the lights on full bore 2hrs before landing so they can serve breakfast. On short flights like this it’s really frustrating.
Lights never came on until descent – it was late morning, and there were a few windows that were brightened such that they did not have to turn the lights up.
On American last summer it was full blast at least 90mins before landing. Ditto on Ana Tokyo to Sydney. On a 9hr redeye it makes a big difference to sleep quality and length.
How did the 1-1-1-1 work out? Doing JFK-HND in a few months on JAL with the family (similar enough ages) and debating whether to go 1-2-1 across, 2/2 in the middle, or 1-1-1-1.
Worked out perfectly. I like this arrangement very much.
I am interested in finding out what the GF breakfast was for your daughter.
is the GF option the same in all classes of the plane?
Unfortunately, she slept through the breakfast so I don’t know from DEN, but from LAX the year before it was the scrambled eggs (same as one of the printed menu options).
Flight crews may initiate cabin lighting ahead of schedule, as directed by pilots, to prioritize crew safety and facilitate pre-landing preparations. Most airline standard operating procedures stipulate a 90-minute timeframe for cabin light activation. Passenger boarding and disembarkation processes often require significant time; therefore, this advance preparation is necessary. Upon the pilot’s initiation of descent or seatbelt sign illumination, federal regulations prohibit further beverage service. All galley service must be secured to avoid potential FAA penalties for non-compliance. Flight attendants are understandably averse to incurring personal fines for providing post-announcement refreshments.
I agree with you on the bedding, and the food is improving, but the seats themselves just are not very comfortable. I am 6’4″, and when I lie flat my head is pushing into the back of my seat. Also, the narrow hole the Polaris seat makes me stick my size 13 feet into is just too small so if I roll side to side I risk twisting an ankle. I usually have to stick one leg in the aisle and hope a disgruntled flight attendant doesn’t plow into my knee. I’ve spoken to other tall travelers (shorter than myself) who also find the Polaris seat uncomfortable and tight given the amount of space delegated to each seat. Whoever United buys the seat from needs to work on it’s design a bit more and better utilize it’s space.
Lanson is good champagne.
Every year you and your family fly a United Airlines long-haul Polaris business class flight to London, post a good review about it, and one of your children writes an article about their perspective(albeit with a little of your help). Keep it up!
This paragraph is left unfinished: “We are past the infant stage and both kids are well-behaved on a plane, but it was nice that the flight attendants knelt down and talked to my chidlren. Sometimes flight attendants only talk to my children via me or my wife, which I understand, but”. You also spelled children wrong.