Defined Benefit (Pension) · DOL Form 5500 · 2023
United Airlines, Inc. Pension Plan
Data updated 2026-08-06
- $3.5B
- Total assets
- 25,492
- Participants
- 100th
- Percentile by assets
- $137,585
- Avg per participant
Official DOL plan name: The Continental Retirement Plan · Sponsored by United Airlines, Inc. · Texas · Transportation & Warehousing
$3.5B in assets, 25,492 participants
United Airlines, Inc.'s The Continental Retirement Plan reported $3.5B in total assets and 25,492 participants in its 2023 DOL Form 5500 filing, ranking in the 100th percentile by assets among filed plans. Figures are as reported by the plan sponsor to the Department of Labor, not audited or endorsed by PlainRetire.
- 100th percentile by assets (of 126,618 plans)
- #3,316 in Transportation & Warehousing (3,344 peers)
Coverage in Texas
The Continental Retirement Plan covers 25,492 participants in Texas, 36x the typical Texas plan (state average ~704 per filing). Assets: $3.5B.
- $3.5B
- total plan assets (2023 EOY)
- 25,492
- covered participants
- 100th
- percentile by assets (of 126,618 plans)
- $137,585
- avg assets per participant
What changed between DOL Form 5500 filings
plan year 2022 → plan year 2023
- The Continental Retirement Plan reported net income rose from $135M in the plan year 2022 filing to $346M in the plan year 2023 filing.
- The Continental Retirement Plan end-of-year assets rose from $3.2B in the plan year 2022 filing to $3.5B in the plan year 2023 filing.
- The Continental Retirement Plan reported participants rose from 24,855 in the plan year 2022 filing to 25,492 in the plan year 2023 filing.
Participants vs Texas filers
In Texas, the average filing covers about 704 participants across 9,718 plans. The Continental Retirement Plan reports 25,492 participants - 36x that state average ($3.5B EOY assets).
Texas filing particulars
| Total Assets (Beginning of Year) | $3.2B |
|---|---|
| Net Assets (End of Year) | $3.5B |
| Net Income | $346M |
| Employer EIN | 742099724 |
| Plan Effective Date | 1988-12-28 |
| Filing Status | FILING RECEIVED |
Sponsor Plan History (United Airlines, Inc.)
| Year | Plans | Participants | Total Assets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 6 | 110,304 | $26.7B |
| 2023 | 6 | 114,586 | $31.8B |
| 2024 | 4 | 102,481 | $32.6B |
Nearby Defined Benefit (Pension) Plans in Texas
Peer Defined Benefit (Pension) plans, same state, same plan type, ranked by total assets.
The Continental Retirement Plan vs. nearby Defined Benefit (Pension) plans in Texas, assets vs. participants
- AT&T Pension Benefit Plan $30.0B · 107,859
- Shell Pension Plan $15.1B · 12,215
- Exxonmobil Pension Plan $12.0B · 22,551
- Caterpillar Inc. Retirement Income Plan $9.8B · 12,138
- Bp Retirement Accumulation Plan $5.5B · 9,360
Scale composition for The Continental Retirement Plan
The Continental Retirement Plan reports $3.5B in end-of-year assets across 25,492 participants (0.030% of the $11.6T held by all Form 5500 filers in the national rollup , and 0.028% of 89,805,449 covered participants) - about $137,585 per participant (1.0x the national average assets-per-participant) . Net income for plan year 2023 was $346M.
This plan identity (EIN 742099724, plan #010) has 2 Form 5500 filings on file from 2022 to 2023 , with end-of-year assets moving from $3.2B to $3.5B (+11.0%) while covered participants moved from 24,855 to 25,492 . Single-year sparse filers cannot show that trail.
| Plan year | Participants | EOY assets | Filing |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 24,855 | $3.2B | Open filing |
| 2023 · index core | 25,492 | $3.5B | This page |
The same sponsor also keeps 4 other index-core plans on PlainRetire:
- United Airlines Pilot Retirement Account Plan (401(k), $16.8B, 16,659 participants)
- United Airlines 401(k) Savings Plan (401(k), $10.3B, 57,326 participants)
- United Airlines Flight Attendant 401(k) Plan (401(k), $5.3B, 27,196 participants)
- The Continental Pilots Retirement Plan (Defined Benefit (Pension), $231M, 1,289 participants)
Similar-Sized Defined Benefit (Pension) Plans Nationally
Defined Benefit (Pension) plans in other states closest to The Continental Retirement Plan by total assets, not by location.
- Operating Engineers Pension Trust (CA) $3.5B · 13,014
- United Mine Workers of America 1974 Pension Plan (DC) $3.5B · 52
- Kodak Retirement Income Plan (NY) $3.5B · 1,991
- Target Corporation Pension Plan (MN) $3.5B · 45,724
Frequently Asked Questions
How did The Continental Retirement Plan assets move in 2023? ▼
How have United Airlines, Inc. plan assets changed over time? ▼
Where does The Continental Retirement Plan rank by assets among Form 5500 filers? ▼
Which Defined Benefit (Pension) plans are similar in size to The Continental Retirement Plan? ▼
Next read for The Continental Retirement Plan
Filing takeaways
Ways to act on The Continental Retirement Plan's numbers.
- By total assets, The Continental Retirement Plan ranks among the largest 1% of all filed plans. See the largest plans
- Compare it side-by-side against 3 similar Defined Benefit (Pension) plans in Texas. Compare plans
- United Airlines, Inc.'s sponsor-wide assets have grown 22.4% since 2022 across 3 plan years on file. More Transportation & Warehousing plans