Friends,

It was a fun day in airline world: United Airlines unveiled its revamped Polaris business class in Brooklyn, and it’s genuinely impressive.

The new Polaris seats feature sliding doors, massive 4K screens, wireless charging, Saks bedding, and even caviar service for the special front row “Polaris Studio” suites (plus hoodie-style pajamas for all). The first jets with this new product will fly from San Francisco to Singapore and London in 2026. It’s a bold evolution of United’s original 2016 Polaris launch, which, while strong, was built more out of necessity than ambition in the Smisek-era.

This time, it’s different.

United is investing in both product and narrative. They’ve rolled out the red carpet with a full-scale media campaign that’s elegant, aspirational, and clear: this is the future of premium travel. It’s exciting even if you’re not flying Polaris—because the branding lifts the whole airline.

And here’s the thing: that investment? It’ll be paid back in one night of transatlantic summer flying.

American, meanwhile, just introduced a new Flagship Suite product that—on paper—is nearly identical. But their rollout? A few unremarkable YouTube shorts and some lightly circulated press coverage. The seat might be solid—but the story barely existed.

And that’s exactly the problem.

Because passengers don’t just buy seats—they buy stories. And when a customer chooses between two similar options, they go with the one that feels more exciting, more inspiring, more worth it. The one that tells the story they see as something closest to their own.

United is winning that narrative—and the difference shows up plainly: on their income statement. Their brand tells a compelling story that people want to buy into. American’s brand does not—not currently, at least. And the result is exactly what you’d expect: United and Delta are commanding massive shares of the industry’s profitability, while American continues to underperform.

American’s product is competitive. But until American starts telling a better story—and investing in the brand that flies it—they’ll keep falling short.

Fly well.

P.S. A group of a dozen flight attendants evidently crashed United’s product launch today, protesting their still-unsettled contract negotiations (now in their fourth year — and yes, they should absolutely be paid more), all while United’s mega-hub at Newark continues to face persistent ATC challenges. So, nothing is perfect.

Links

United’s new Polaris cabin and interior overhaul looks fantastic.

Spirit is also enhancing things, which feels underwhelming by comparison.

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