United Airlines’ newest Boeing 787-9 has been unable to catch a break, as just days after it returned from Moses Lake, it seems to be grounded again, and its trans-Atlantic service from London Heathrow Airport (LHR) to San Francisco International Airport (SFO) was canceled this evening. The problem, as reported by aviation insider JonNYC on X, appears due to challenges with the Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS).

Allegedly, the primary issue facing the new aircraft is that it has been ‘plagued’ with TCAS issues, due to the collision avoidance system continuing to fail, and forced the plane to have both its antennas replaced during a layover at the United Kingdom’s busiest airport gateway.

United Airlines New Boeing 787-9 Continues To Be Plagued With Issues

Credit: Flickr

It’s important to note that JonNYC noted that the above claims are unconfirmed. Simple Flying has reached out to United Airlines to verify the claims. It is an unfortunate turn of events for the Chicago-based carrier, which had hotly anticipated the arrival of this Dreamliner, which is the first to be fitted with an elevated onboard interior, including the Flagship Polaris Studio Suite, and was first inaugurated on a flight to Singapore Changi Airport (SIN), but was unable to complete its return leg after issues forced the flight to be canceled.

Since then, the aircraft has had an on again / off again series of operations where the airline has been required to park or cancel flights at the last minute as these issues remain unresolved. On June 20, the plane was eventually ferried to the Boeing facility at Moses Lake, Washington, where it was hoped a thorough service would fix any outstanding issues. Unfortunately, this was not the case.

Simple Flying contacted United for comment on when they expect the aircraft to return to service, however a airline spokesperson could not immediately be reached.

United Flight UA939 Canceled

Credit: Shutterstock

The plane was returned from Moses Lake on Tuesday, June 30, and operated a domestic rotation to Houston before flying to London on July 2. The outbound service to London operated without major disruption, departing from San Francisco on Thursday at 7:54 PM with an arrival ten hours later in the UK at 1:55 PM.

United had hoped for the return flight to also operate; however, the 6:15 PM departure was subsequently canceled following the issues with the TCAS system. These antennas have since been replaced; however, the aircraft at the time of writing remains on the apron at London Heathrow, with an expected departure now set for Saturday at 7:00 PM for a non-stop flight back to San Francisco.

For now, it seems that the beloved aircraft continues to face teething challenges as United continues to work with Boeing after a path of maintenance issues since the airplane’s arrival.

United 787-9 Elevated Interior

Credit: Channing Reid

The new airplane features the next-generation Polaris Business Class and Polaris Studio suite, alongside an elevated interior throughout the plane. The plane itself was first delivered to United in February from Charleston, South Carolina; however, since then, it has been limping through regular operations.

The jet itself has the largest number of premium seats of any aircraft in the United fleet and is fitted with Starlink connectivity for ultra-fast WiFi in the sky, some of the largest 4K OLED seatback screens in the industry, and a new Ossetra caviar amuse bouche service for Polaris passengers. Seat configuration as below:

This cabin configuration is an upgrade on the existing 787-9 layout, which has 48 Polaris Business Class, 21 Premium Plus, 39 Economy Plus, and 149 economy seats.

While the latest issue with N61101 is yet another blow to the airplane’s operational history, it can only be expected that both Boeing and United will be keeping a close eye on this bird as the issues continue to unravel for what was supposed to be the jewel in the United crown.