Flying first class? Pay more than $17,000

Flying first class? Pay more than $17,000

United Airlines will keep three-class cabins on some wide-body jets, separating itself from other airlines that have switched to two tiers of service, as its meshes fleets with Continental Airlines after their merger.

Retaining first-class seats on current United planes is best for the international routes where passengers are willing to pay top prices, said Chief Executive Officer Jeff Smisek. While Continental's jets have only business and coach seats, 57 United aircraft have first-class cabins as well.

First-class tickets can be hugely expensive: United is charging $17,471 for a walk-up, first-class ticket between San Francisco and Beijing, and $1,993 for a coach seat, according to the carrier's website. A business-class fare, with more amenities than an economy ticket, is $7,076.

Choosing cabin layouts is a pivotal step as the carriers blend operations into the world's largest airline. Some other airlines, including Delta Air Lines, have dropped first class.

American stops gate-checking

some big strollers

American Airlines is requiring passengers to check large strollers at the ticket counter instead of waiting until they get to the departure gate.

That means parents won't be able to push their children from the counter to the gate in strollers that weigh more than 20 pounds or don't fold up. Parents still will be allowed to check smaller, umbrella-type strollers at the gate. There's no baggage fee for strollers, no matter what size, the airline said.

However, some of the new, large strollers were difficult for gate agents to handle at the last minute during boarding, said American Airlines spokesman Tim Smith.

United has a similar ban on gate-checking large strollers, according to a spokesman. Continental, Delta and JetBlue allow strollers of all sizes to be checked at the gate.