American Airlines on Monday revealed details of sweeping interior improvements coming to their future aircraft.
Beginning in 2013, all of the carrier’s new aircraft will feature personal in-seat entertainment, domestic and international wifi access, 110V AC and USB power plugs, as well as a few other impressive additions.
They will be including these features on all Boeing 737-800s, Airbus A319s and A321s, which are expected to be delivered through 2017, as well as the new Boeing 737 MAX 8s which will begin joining the fleet in 2018.
On the airline’s signature New York to Los Angeles and San Francisco routes, American said it will be replacing old Boeing 767-200s with new Airbus A321s starting in the fall of 2013. Specific to this route will be a three-class configuration with fully lie-flat seats in first and business classes, and direct aisle access from each first class seat. These improvements will put American in direct competition with Virgin America and Delta in terms of passenger experience, as well as United’s P.S. service, which is currently receiving a passenger experience overhaul as well.
American also unveiled details on their Boeing 777-300ER, which is scheduled to enter service in December of this year. The improvements echo those being made on the domestic side, with the additions of aisle access from every business seat, as well as a premium cabin walk-up bar, a first for any US carrier on the 777. American also reaffirmed that they will be taking delivery of the Boeing 787 “in the near future.”
Leading up to the announcement, some in the industry were expecting to see a refreshed livery for the new aircraft. Although this was not announced today, American did nothing to quash these rumors. In a promo video detailing the changes, all aircraft were shown in bare metal, with no livery at all. American intentionally omitting a livery from the video may be more evidence that we will see a new livery sometime soon.
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Jason Rabinowitz is a New York City native who has grown up in the shadow of JFK International Airport. A true “avgeek”, Jason enjoys aircraft photography, and taking any opportunity he can get to fly on aircraft. He recently graduated from Thomas Cooley Law School in Lansing, Michigan. You can find him on Twitter at @Yankees368 to discuss anything airline related.
