It’s not often that I deviate from United, but had a chance to do so a few days ago on a trip from New York to Los Angeles on American. I enjoyed it.
One thing I appreciate about premium transcontinental service on American its that passengers have access to the international Flagship Lounge, not just the Admiral’s Club. I’ve reviewed the lounge before in JFK, but it remains a a nice oasis before the flight. I proceeded directly to the Flagship Bridge, which is far less crowded than the main lounge.
American’s specially-configured Airbus A321s offer 10 seats in first class, 20 in business class, and 72 in economy class. I chose a window seat in row seven.
The cabin was warm during the flight, though the individual air vents compensated for that. I tried to sleep, but ending up working for most of the flight.
Internet speeds were amazing! AA’s new ViaSat system seriously impressed me.
Dinner was served after takeoff and included mixed nuts, a nice mozzarella cheese appetizer, and a green salad to start.
I pre-selected potato-encrusted salmon with vegetables as my main course. While the hash brown topping was a disappointment, the fish itself was flavorful and moist.
The cheese course was tasty and I indulged in an ice cream sundae with nuts, whipped cream, and chocolate sauce.
Prior to landing a warm cookie was served.
Service was excellent on this flight.
United vs. American
In terms of the business class seat, the A321 is identical to what I am used to on United. United offers better bedding as well. The meals were a draw. I thought the appetizer and salad was better on AA than UA, United offers a better main course, the cheese was better on AA, and the ice cream sundaes were a draw. I like that AA allows you to pre-order meals.
The internet was a huge issue, though, in American’s favor. What a difference to have internet speeds that make you feel like you are at home. That was the best $16 I ever spent…
Service was great on American, but this was just one flight. I’d need to fly AA more in order to fairly compare service, though I note that United usually addresses business class passengers by name and AA did not. Other than that, though, the ladies working my cabin were very kind and attentive. No complaints.
CONCLUSION
I’m not jumping ship, but the difference in internet was like light and day. I cannot emphasize enough how helpful I found the internet onboard this flight. It made me so much more productive.
After I wrap up my current Asia trip report I will provide a detailed review of this flight.
There’s an article in the Washington post that the women was actually never abandoned in the wheelchair in the airport. Thought u should know.
you should see the follow-up article how that was false
I did. I’ll be addressing it tomorrow.
Ok. This is a very important question. Was the chocolate sauce actually hot fudge or chocolate syrup? This will determine who I fly to Los Angeles for in March with. For the money or points I will have to cough up, it must be hot fudge. Nothing else will suffice. Awaiting your response.
I actually think it was syrup, though it was ladled from a cup.
I traveled on them several times recently in first class and it was definitely hot fudge. Can’t stand chocolate syrup. 🙂
I guess I can’t tell the difference! 😉
Well, since your baseline is United I am not surprised you liked AA.
In defense of United, I think that both are very good.
I do think United could take a few lessons here. In addition to the Internet service, I’d like to see access to Polaris lounges for United ps premium customers and an equivalent to Emerald within the Star Alliance.
It’s A Christmas Miracle! Someone actually loved a flight on AA. Sad that is it the exception and not the norm.
I took a morning flight from LA on the same plane. It took 90 minutes t serve breakfast and the dishes sat for the next two hours. Completely unimpressed. No consistency at all on AA.
I know I am in a very small minority here, but I actually preferred AA Biz on a redeye to JetBlue Mint (non-single seat). I find the seats much more comfortable. Daytime flight, and in the single-suite, I get the hype on B6, but overall I like the storage options and the way the bed lays on the AA seat much better than B6’s.
Very interesting to see this since Lucky tweeted that he was fed up with AA
I’m a longtime United 1K, and this year I flew the front cabins of United, American, and Delta. Considering all trips for each of the three, my favorite experiences were on American. I was thoroughly impressed, though the operational issues make American very unattractive for me to book. Getting to my destination on time and as originally booked is more important to me than onboard experience.