United Orders 22 Airbus Planes

United Airlines is buying 22 additional planes from Airbus Industrie, continuing to diversify what was once an all-Boeing Co. fleet.

United ordered 12 single-aisle A-320s and 10 A-319s, which will be delivered in 2000 and 2001. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported Friday that the order is worth $1 billion.

The order, announced Thursday, was part of a 1996 agreement in which United had options to buy more planes. The Chicago-based airline said that based on current delivery schedules, its fleet will grow to 645 planes by the end of 2001, up from 571 planes at the end of last year.

The order brings to 133 the number of single-aisle Airbus planes in United's fleet.

United had only Boeing planes in its fleet until 1992, when it made its first order from Airbus.

Earlier this year, United ordered $3.2 billion worth of Boeing's widebody jets.