UnitedAirlines（联合航空） is betting big on the future of air travel—and that’s good news foreverybody from plane manufacturers（制造商） to other airlines and the traveling public.

Atits investor day Tuesday, United announced（宣布） a huge order for 200 Boeing 737 MAXjets and 70 Airbus A320 planes. The order, with a list price of roughly $27billion, is the largest in the company’s history and the largest by any carrier in a decade, according to the airline.

Forthe record, United Airline ended 2020 with 812 planes in its fleet（机群）. And thecompany is primarily a Boeing airline, but also operates about 180 Airbusplanes. The order for the newest version of the A320 is a nice win for Boeingrival Airbus. But Boeing wasn’t left out, The 747 MAX was re-certified（重新认证） to fly inthe U.S. and Europe in December after being grounded since March 2019 followingtwo deadly crashes within 5 months. United’s order shows airlines still haveconfidence in the MAX and are moving past the plane’s recent problems.

Theclosing price of United Airline on Monday was at around $52. The size and scopeof the order shows United, whose stock is still down 45% from its pre-pandemic（疫情前） highs despite gaining 22% this year, believes travelers will come back topre-Covid levels.

Unitedis also doubling down on traveler comfort. It’s adding 75% more premium seating （头等舱）on North American departures along with larger overhead bins（头顶行李架）, more seatbackentertainment, and Wi-Fi. Air travelers can look forward to a little morelegroom as well as a little less gate-checked baggage.

However,U.S. air traffic, in June, is still roughly 25% below its level before Covid-19Boeing stock is up about 12% year to date, but about 45% below their levelbefore the grounding of the MAX and the pandemic. Overall, the order is goodnews for Boeing, but it also shows United Airline believes travelers will comeback. That’s good news for the entire industry.