*INAUGURAL FLIGHT* United Airlines - 🇺🇸 Newark to Seoul 🇰🇷 - Boeing 787-9 - Sept. 4, 2026

A Mark-Joe Trip Report no. 10 United Airlines Flight UA285 Newark Liberty (EWR) - Seoul Incheon (ICN) Date: September 4-5, 2026 [Inaugural Flight] Aircraft: Boeing 787-9 Registration: N27958 Seat: 34A [Economy Plus] Takeoff: 10:56am Landing: 2:49pm Flight Time: 14hrs. 53min Full Gate Ceremony:    • United Airlines UA285 Newark to Seoul - IN...   Well, here it is folks! After spending a few hours each day putting together all the footage and captions, I present to you a very special trip report where I had the honor of participating in United Airlines' Inaugural non-stop service from Newark, NJ to Seoul, South Korea! This flight had been circled on my calendar since this was first announced Oct. 2025 It's been a dream of mine to participate in an Inaugural flight, re-visit Seoul (1998 was the last time I was there but just as a layover to the Philippines), and fly on a Boeing 787. I got to do all 3 in one swoop. Korean Culture has experienced a meteoric rise in popularity worldwide over the last 2 decades, from K-Pop to K-Dramas. Many people I know, including several close family to friends to even my piano students, have all given in to the Korean Wave. So, I figured I'd take the opportunity to visit the central hub of it all, Seoul. In addition, I also got to visit Busan, another wonderful city that's also rising fast in the tourism industry. Many thanks to the folks at United and the Korea Tourism Organization for putting together an outstanding Inaugural 0:00 - Intro 0:30 - Gate Festivities 9:40 - Boarding 13:04 - Captain's Welcome Announcement 13:53 - Pushback & Engine Start 16:30 - Taxiing 17:45 - Takeoff RWY 04L 22:39 - Passing 10,000ft 23:55 - Captain's Update 24:33 - 1st Meal Service 25:00 - Checking out Inaugural Folder 26:48 - Cruising 30:33 - IFE System 33:33 - Mid-flight Snack 34:28 - Approaching Japan 36:08 - Pre-arrival Meal 37:25 - First Officer Announcement 38:16 - Approach into Seoul 40:30 - Landing RWY 15L 44:00 - Gate Arrival & Disembarking 45:30 - Highlights from Seoul/Busan