Another United Airlines Boeing 757-300 mechanical issue prompts return to Los Angeles

A United Airlines transpacific flight to Hawaii was recently diverted to its airport of origin due to a technical glitch with the aircraft.

The flight was on a Boeing 757 plane, which is over 20 years old. While United’s 757 fleet continues to reliably transport passengers across the US and on international flights, the carrier will gradually phase them out in the coming years, replacing them with new-generation narrowbody planes.

On December 31, a United Airlines Boeing 757-300 aircraft flying from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport (KOA) in Hawaii had to turn back not too long after takeoff due to a mechanical issue.

According to Flightradar24, the jetliner traveled over the ocean and reached a cruising altitude of 34,000 feet. However, it was soon seen turning around and returning to Los Angeles.

The exact nature of the issue is not yet known, and Simple Flying has contacted the airline for comments.

According to KLTA, United Airlines confirmed that the plane landed back in Los Angeles at 12:15 and a different aircraft was arranged to take the 226 passengers to Kona.

The aircraft in question is an almost 23-year-old Boeing 757-300 , registered N78866. According to ch-aviation, it was delivered in 2002 and had accumulated more than 69,000 hours across 20,722 flight cycles as of July 2024.

The plane can seat a total of 234 passengers across three cabin configurations: economy, economy plus, and business.

The latest diversion comes just days after another United 757-300 had to divert to Albuquerque, New Mexico, after the crew noticed smoke in the cabin.

It was performing flight UA2225 from Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD) to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX).

The plane declared an emergency before diverting. It landed normally and was briefly inspected by emergency crews at the airport.

A different plane was arranged to take customers to their destination that evening.

There have also been other minor United 757 incidents in the last few months. In October, a United 757 was forced to return to Denver shortly after takeoff due to a hydraulic failure. It had departed for a scheduled flight to Lihue, Hawaii.

In the same month, another United 757 was forced to divert to Pittsburgh International Airport after crew members noticed a strange odor in the cabin.

The aircraft was performing flight 2294, which flew from Newark Liberty International Airport to Los Angeles International Airport.

A few weeks back, a 30-year-old United 757 faced a flap issue on the final approach, resulting in a go-around at Lihue Airport (LIH).

The issue was fixed on the subsequent approach, and the aircraft landed without incident.

United Airlines operates a diverse fleet and one of the largest in the world. Its narrowbody fleet comprises the Airbus A320 family, Boeing 737 jets, and Boeing 757s.

According to ch-aviation, United has 40 Boeing 757-200 planes in its fleet with an average age of 28 years.

It also has 21 757-300 variants with an average age of 22.4 years. While these planes continue to serve the airline on domestic and international routes, most of them are close to retirement.

As such, United is planning to gradually phase them out with the new-generation Airbus A321XLR.

The carrier is expected to receive its first A321XLR sometime in 2025, which will replace its aging 757s over the years.

United also deploys its 757s to some transatlantic destinations in Europe and its Senior Vice President for Global Network Planning and Alliances, Patrick Quayle, states that these operations have become uneconomical for these smaller markets.

However, United wants to continue flying to these destinations, and the A321XLR, with its better fuel efficiency and range, would be an appropriate replacement. Simple Flying has analyzed this in detail in the article below.