Here’s a “review” of the spacious new Flagship Suites Preferred on American Airlines, the front-row business class seats on the new 787-9 Dreamliners. I put review in quotations because my flight ultimately went mechanical, so this review will heavily focus on the seat rather than the flight itself.

American Airlines 787-9 Business Class – Flagship Suites Preferred Review

I was very excited to fly from Chicago to London in AA’s new Flagship Suite Preferred, a step up from the already competitive Flagship Suite I had flown from Los Angeles to Chicago on the same aircraft.

Boarding began 50 minutes prior to departure from gate K3.

AA 46
Chicago (ORD) – London (LHR)
Wednesday, August 13
Depart: 8:35 PM
Arrive: 10:30 AM+1
Duration: 07hr, 55min
Distance: 3,953 miles
Aircraft: Boeing 787-9
Seat: 11A (Business Class – Flagship Suite “Preferred”)

Onboard, I turned left and found my seat in the front of the rear business class cabin.

Seat

The Flagship Suite Preferred on the 787-9 is not a new seat design, but rather a bulkhead version of the standard Flagship Suite. Located in the first row of each cabin (1A, 1L, 2D, 2H, 10D, 10H, 10L, and 11A on the 787-9), these seats offer more personal space thanks to a larger footwell, extended legroom, and a broader counter surface opposite the seat. The added room makes a noticeable difference, particularly when sleeping, since the footwell is less restrictive than in the other suites.

Visually, the Preferred seats stand out with darker finishes and doors, giving them a different aesthetic than the standard suites elsewhere in the cabin (the Preferred Seats are black, the rest of the cabin is faux woodgrain). The core dimensions of the seat, based on the Adient Ascent platform, remain the same, with a width of around 21 inches and a fully flat bed length of about 79 inches, but the extra clearance around the seat makes the space feel more open and less confined.

Each suite includes a sliding door that provides a bit of privacy, though it does not extend all the way to the ceiling. Storage is improved in the Preferred seats, with additional cubbies and shelving that make it easier to stow small items and spread out during the flight. Power outlets, USB-A and USB-C ports, and wireless charging are all within easy reach, though the wireless charging pad can be finicky in practice (it worked for me, though).

There are personal air vents on this aircraft.

Being in the bulkhead row does come with potential trade-offs. The proximity to galleys and lavatories means more foot traffic, light, and noise, especially during meal services. Even so, the Preferred suites are the best choice in the cabin if you value extra space and a less restrictive sleeping surface. At present, these seats can be selected without an additional fee, making them an easy pick when available.

Amenties

Not only is there more room for your feet and more storage, but there’s an upgraded amenity kit and most importantly, extra bedding, including a mattress pad and a very soft additional blanket, plus two extra pillows.

The Brandon Blackwood amenity kit included earplugs, a dental kit, socks, and skincare products from Dorion Renaud, including facial mist, hand lotion, and lip balm.

Nest-branded slippers were also waiting at the seat.

Food + Drink

While the Flagship Suite Preferred offers an enhanced amenity kit and extra bedding, the food and beverage options are identical to the rest of the business class cabin. Here’s the menu for my flight:

Although I’ve been burned by overcooked beef many times on American Airlines, it’s typically the filet mignon that is to be avoided, not short ribs or pot roast. For this flight, I pre-0rdered the “All Day Roast.”

ALL DAY ROAST
roasted beef served with roasted potatoes, peas, turnips, and carrots with apple cider demi sauce

As you’ll read about below, I ultimately ate the same meal on my rebooked flight, but here’s what it would have looked like…

First, a warm towel followed by drinks and canapes, which included both warmed mixed nuts and a stuffed pepper with feta cheese and olives…both very good and I love that AA has pistachios and pecans in its nut mix.

The slow-roasted pot roast was delicious (very tender) and served with an appetizer (an “eggplant caponata” served with grilled artichokes and feta cheese) and a green salad.

I always love the ice cream sundae, though the ice cream was rock hard…would have been perfect had it been allowed to melt for 20-30 minutes. A cheese plate and raspberry cheesecake were also available.

Chicago – London is far too short, in my mind, for a second meal, but a choice of fruit plate or mushroom-leek fritata were served prior to landing, either with Chibani Greek yogurt and breakfast bread.

IFE + Wi-Fi

The seatback screen in Flagship Suites Preferred represents a missed opportunity. There’s space for a monitor twice as large, but AA stuck with the same size screen (17.5 inches) throughout the entire premium cabin. The system includes a large assortment of TV shows, movies, music, and games, plus a moving flight map.

AA offers Bang & Olufsen headphones.

Wi-Fi was not yet turned on by the time we were all asked to step off the flight, but would likely have been $39.99 for the flight. AA needs free Wi-Fi…

Service

It all started so well. I boarded the flight, where I was very warmly greeted by the crew. One lovely flight attendant even wanted to pose for a picture with the new suites and the purser, Terry, was such a nice man. He stopped by to greet each passenger and take their meal order, but not in a rushed way…he welcomed them by name and asked if they had yet had a chance to consider the menu.

When we had a mechanical issue (detailed below) I stopped by the flight deck and the flight crew was incredibly friendly, welcoming me inside. We had a nice chat and they even showed me the crew rest area.

I was so sorry ultimately not to have flown with this crew.

Mechanical Issue

We pushed back a few minutes late, and then came the bad news. The captain announced a nose gear issue. We returned to the gate where maintenance staff boarded the aircraft to address the issue. I think it may have been software-related, but every time the system was reset, the issue would reappear. Ultimately, the plane had to be taken out of service. We were asked to deboard and await an update, though the captain mentioned that American Airlines had a spare aircraft in the hangar.

I retreated to the Flagship Lounge where, over the next few hours, we experienced a rolling delay. Ultimately, it became too late (the crew timed out) and the flight was rescheduled for the following afternoon at 5:00 pm. The flight ultimately departed at 5:51 pm the following day.

I took an alternate flight to London.

CONCLUSION

In a sense, at least I got half of a review out of this Flagship Suite Preferred…good pictures, 90 minutes in the seat, and I can attest the seat is great and the bedding is excellent. At some point, AA will start charging extra for the seat and the price I would have been willing to pay for this flight would be about $300, though I may be more conservative than others (and I value it at that because the “regular” seats are quite good themselves).

While my mechanical delay was sadly not unusual for this new aircraft in the AA fleet, I hope the kinks are shortly worked out because this is a very nice product and a great way to travel form the USA to London.

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