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Variable Interest Entities | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2016
Variable Interest Entities | NOTE 14 - VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES Variable interests are contractual, ownership or other monetary interests in an entity that change with fluctuations in the fair value of the entity’s net assets exclusive of variable interests. A VIE can arise from items such as lease agreements, loan arrangements, guarantees or service contracts. An entity is a VIE if (a) the entity lacks sufficient equity or (b) the entity’s equity holders lack power or the obligation and right as equity holders to absorb the entity’s expected losses or to receive its expected residual returns. Therefore, if the equity owners as a group do not have the power to direct the entity’s activities that most significantly impact its economic performance, the entity is a VIE. If an entity is determined to be a VIE, the entity must be consolidated by the primary beneficiary. The primary beneficiary is the holder of the variable interests that has the power to direct the activities of a VIE that (i) most significantly impact the VIE’s economic performance and (ii) has the obligation to absorb losses of or the right to receive benefits from the VIE that could potentially be significant to the VIE. Therefore, the Company must identify which activities most significantly impact the VIE’s economic performance and determine whether it, or another party, has the power to direct those activities. The Company’s evaluation of its association with VIEs is described below: Aircraft Leases. We are the lessee in a number of operating leases covering the majority of our leased aircraft. The lessors are trusts established specifically to purchase, finance and lease aircraft to us. These leasing entities meet the criteria for VIEs. We are generally not the primary beneficiary of the leasing entities if the lease terms are consistent with market terms at the inception of the lease and do not include a residual value guarantee, fixed-price purchase option or similar feature that obligates us to absorb decreases in value or entitles us to participate in increases in the value of the aircraft. This is the case for many of our operating leases; however, leases of 37 mainline jet aircraft contain a fixed-price purchase option that allow United to purchase the aircraft at predetermined prices on specified dates during the lease term. Additionally, leases covering 192 leased regional jet aircraft contain an option to purchase the aircraft at the end of the lease term at prices that, depending on market conditions, could be below fair value. United has not consolidated the related trusts because, even taking into consideration these purchase options, United is still not the primary beneficiary. United’s maximum exposure under these leases is the remaining lease payments, which are reflected in future lease commitments in Note 13 of this report. EETCs. United evaluated whether the pass-through trusts formed for its EETC financings, treated as either debt or aircraft operating leases, are VIEs required to be consolidated by United under applicable accounting guidance, and determined that the pass-through trusts are VIEs. Based on United’s analysis as described below, United determined that it does not have a variable interest in the pass-through trusts. The primary risk of the pass-through trusts is credit risk (i.e. the risk that United, the issuer of the equipment notes, may be unable to make its principal and interest payments). The primary purpose of the pass-through trust structure is to enhance the credit worthiness of United’s debt obligation through certain bankruptcy protection provisions, a liquidity facility (in certain of the EETC structures) and improved loan-to-value ratios for more senior debt classes. These credit enhancements lower United’s total borrowing cost. Pass-through trusts are established to receive principal and interest payments on the equipment notes purchased by the pass-through trusts from United and remit these proceeds to the pass-through trusts’ certificate holders. United does not invest in or obtain a financial interest in the pass-through trusts. Rather, United has an obligation to make interest and principal payments on its equipment notes held by the pass-through trusts. United did not intend to have any voting or non-voting equity interest in the pass-through trusts or to absorb variability from the pass-through trusts. Based on this analysis, the Company determined that it is not required to consolidate the pass-through trusts.

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- Definition The entire disclosure for a variable interest entity (VIE), including but not limited to, judgments and assumptions in determining whether to consolidate and in identifying the primary beneficiary, gain (loss) recognized on the initial consolidation of the VIE, terms of arrangements, amounts and classification of the VIE's assets and liabilities, and the entity's maximum exposure to loss. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 810 -SubTopic 10 -Section 50 -Paragraph 5A -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=64801991&loc=SL6759159-111685 Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 810 -SubTopic 10 -Section 50 -Paragraph 4 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=64801991&loc=d3e5728-111685 Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 810 -SubTopic 10 -Section 50 -Paragraph 3 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=64801991&loc=d3e5710-111685 + Details
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