United Airlines (UAL) official guidance

As we look into 2027, I think we're going to take about 2 wide-body aircraft a month, and we'll take over 100 narrow-body aircraft.

As we look into 2027, I think we're going to take about 2 wide-body aircraft a month, and we'll take over 100 narrow-body aircraft.

As we look to 2027, we are going to continue to target 2%-3% CASM-ex.

Underlying this guidance is a CASM-ex that will decelerate and a TRASM that is accelerating compared to the third quarter.

We remain on pace to generate 1 million new accounts in 2026, a material increase from 2025, thanks to changes to MileagePlus, along with strong marketing from both United and Chase.

We'll do a million accounts this year. We'll get those accounts spending. We'll get them upgraded to higher credit cards, the club card in particular, and then we'll do another million accounts next year.

Looking ahead, we expect fourth quarter earnings per share to be between $0.50 and $1.50. Assuming an all-in fuel price per gallon of approximately $4.80, based on last Friday's forward curve.

We aim to recapture 100% of the price of oil in 2027.

We are forecasting that our fuel recapture in the fourth quarter will be similar to the third quarter, given the continued increase in fuel prices.

Looking ahead, we expect fourth quarter earnings per share to be between $0.50 and $1.50. Assuming an all-in fuel price per gallon of approximately $4.80, based on last Friday's forward curve.

I said in my prepared remarks, but let me repeat. We intend to bring that liquidity to $18 billion at year-end. $20 billion is too much.

However, we remain determined to achieve investment grade metrics and hopefully also ratings next year. We continue to target net leverage of less than two turns.

On this call, we will talk a lot about 2026 and the current environment, but I want to take a couple of minutes to focus on 2027 and specifically answer the question: What will it take for us to reach our goal of double-digit pre-tax margins next year?

We currently expect to reach 61% of departures by the end of 2026, 87% by June 1st, and available fleet-wide by the end of 2027.

We currently expect to reach 61% of departures by the end of 2026, 87% by June 1st, and available fleet-wide by the end of 2027.

Underlying this guidance is a CASM-ex that will decelerate and a TRASM that is accelerating compared to the third quarter.

With this in mind, in 2027, we plan to retire at least 80 aircraft as we continue to renew and upgauge our fleet, a step up from the last few years.

For the full year, we are tightening our guidance range to the high end of our previous guide and expect earnings per share between $9 and $11.

Looking ahead, we expect third quarter earnings per share to be between $2.50 and $3.50, underpinned with an all-in fuel price of approximately $3.69, based on Tuesday's curve.

During the quarter, we accelerated the rollout of free Starlink Wi-Fi and now expect to have close to 1,000 Starlink-equipped aircraft by the end of this year.