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United Airlines is testing a new premium option in economy class: blocked middle seats.

The airline unveiled on Tuesday that some middle seats on its new Airbus A321XLRs would be blocked with a “permanently fixed” tray table separating the window and aisle seats.

United said the tray table features a “soft leather-like covering” and “two indentations for cups” and provides shared table space and additional elbow room for passengers. It resembles European-style business class, aka “Eurobusiness.”

The special row goes on sale later this year and will be located in the airline’s extra-fee Economy Plus section, which already offers an extra three inches of legroom. United said it didn’t yet have pricing details.

The row will be available only on the A321XLRs for now, but United said it is “exploring” the idea for other aircraft in the future.

“We’re investing nose-to-tail across our fleet and giving customers choice and value in every cabin,” Andrew Nocella, United’s EVP and chief commercial officer, said in a press release.

The airline’s first A321XLR — which will replace United’s Boeing 757s on mostly transatlantic routes, like Newark to Edinburgh — was delivered in June and is expected to enter domestic service in the fall and international service in early 2027.

United did not disclose its exact strategy for blocking middle seats, but the setup appears to kill two birds with one stone: it saves money by keeping flight attendant staffing to a minimum, and it’s another way for United to upsell incremental comfort upgrades amid booming premium demand.

Save on labor and upsell economy

Federal regulations require United’s 150-seater A321XLRs to have one flight attendant per 50 certified seats, plus a fourth due to the complexity of the sliding doors in business class.

Adding just one more would trigger a fifth and add labor costs. United also recently signed a new labor contract with its flight attendant union in May that hiked pay by 31% and added boarding pay.

United, however, said it plans to staff five flight attendants on “most transatlantic flights, consistent with its practice on the Boeing 757 it is replacing.”

Blocking middle seats is also another way for United to monetize its premium-heavy airplanes.

A fifth of the A321XLR’s seats will be either Polaris lie-flat business class suites or premium economy, leaving a large pool of coach passengers that United can still upsell — in this case, for more elbow room.

The idea reflects a broader push by United to expand premium options across the entire airplane.

The airline recently introduced two-person business-class “Studios” on its new Boeing 787-9s. It’s also preparing to launch a “Relax Row” in coach, which is a row of three economy seats with legrests that convert into a bed-like surface.

A version of ‘Eurobusiness’

For decades, European airlines like Lufthansa, Finnair, British Airways, and Air France have blocked the middle seat in rows at the front of the plane to create a distinct business class on short-haul flights.

“Eurobusiness” is not a true domestic first-class recliner like United or Delta offers, but the ticket usually includes free luggage, priority check-in and boarding, and lounge access.

European-style business class is not entirely new to US travelers. US airlines broadly adopted blocked middle seats during the pandemic for health and distancing reasons.

Spirit Airlines, before its collapse, experimented with blocked middle seats as part of a broader test of premium-economy-like cabins. Budget carrier Frontier Airlines started blocking middle seats in 2024 through its “UpFront Plus” product.

Frontier’s SVP and chief commercial officer, Robert Schroeter, said in a May earnings call that the seat “drives quite a bit of benefit,” adding that its revenue contribution for the airline has “increased significantly.”

Editor’s note: This article was originally published in June and has been updated.