American Airlines recently introduced its new Airbus A321XLRs, which feature all-new cabins. These are supposed to be an exciting aspect of American’s attempt to move upmarket and better compete, as these planes will be used in lucrative markets, including on transcontinental flights and across the Atlantic.
Well, I just flew American’s A321XLR Flagship Suite business class from New York (JFK) to Los Angeles (LAX), and oh my, I don’t even know where to begin. While I’ve praised American’s new Boeing 787-9Ps and think they’re a great step in the right direction, these A321XLRs feel like they were designed in a board room, with no input from passengers or crew. And admittedly I kind of knew what to expect, but there were several little aspects to the product that really took away from the experience.
In this post:
The brutal American A321XLR feedback I overheard
Before I even share my take on the product (as someone who lives and breathes airline passenger experience), let me share what’s perhaps most telling. Often when you fly a new first or business class product, you’ll hear people onboard gushing about how amazing and impressive it is. After all, premium airline seats have come a long way.
After the plane landed in Los Angeles and the seatbelt sign was turned off, business class passengers just started talking with one another. What were they talking about? Well, how much they hated these new seats:
- “This is the worst business class seat I’ve ever been in”
- “I can’t believe this is their new business class, what were they thinking?”
- “Who designed this seat, this is so tight?”
I’m not making this stuff up, these are the real comments I overheard between strangers. I didn’t hear a single person say a positive thing. Of all the airline products I’ve ever flown, I’ve never witnessed such a negative reaction all at once.
Even during boarding, as people walked back to economy, nobody had the usual comments about how “wow, look how nice these seats, I want to sit up here.” Instead, I heard:
- “Why are the seats facing away from the windows?”
- “It’s giving New York city cubicle” (he then proceeded to tell the whole business class cabin how his voice is raspy despite the fact he hasn’t hooked up with a guy in 11 days, and then said he hopes he ends up on TikTok — hey, I heard it, so you have to hear it as well)
- “This is what all the hype was about?”
Is American’s A321XLR business class seat really that bad?
While I always enjoy hearing what others have to say, let me share my own take. American’s A321XLR business class is based on the Collins Aerospace Aurora platform, which is a herringbone product, meaning that passengers face away from the windows, and toward the aisle.
Now here’s the thing — American isn’t the first airline to have a product like this. We first saw these seats in the form of JetBlue’s A321LR Mint Suites, and this is also Iberia’s A321XLR business class. So is it fair to criticize American, when other airlines have this as well? Yes and no.
First, let me say that I think most of us aren’t fans of herringbone layouts, where you’re facing the aisle. It’s sort of awkward during boarding, and in general, you have to contort your body to look out the window. The seat also feels super tight, with walls on both sides, and the storage space is also so limited.
Herringbone seats were among the first flat bed seats we saw a couple of decades ago, so why are they making a comeback? The reality is that a herringbone configuration is more efficient than a reverse herringbone configuration, and on narrow body planes, space really comes at a premium, in order for the economics to work. So as narrow body planes increasingly fly longer distances, we’re seeing a return of these less spacious seats.
So, what’s the problem with American’s A321XLR business class, exactly? As I see it, there are a few things that make this marginally worse than other versions of the product:
- While American’s A321XLR business class seats have doors, they can’t yet be used, as they haven’t been certified; I don’t think that’s a huge deal, but it’s worth mentioning
- It’s my understanding that American’s A321XLR business class is pitched tighter than JetBlue’s A321LR business class, so the seat does feel a bit less spacious
- Because of how tight the seat is, plus the TV swinging out in front of you, American’s policy is that the TV has to be stored during the meal service, so that the crew can serve passengers; when you step back, it’s absolutely mind boggling to think that a seat was designed where this needs to be the policy
- The tray table was super flimsy, and would just squeak and shake constantly; I was working on my laptop, and eventually just placed the laptop on my lap, since the noise of the tray table was so unpleasant
So as I view it, the new American A321XLR is only marginally worse than what you’ll find on JetBlue and Iberia. However, the hard product on neither of those airlines is particularly good to begin with, and then when you even make it a little bit worse, that’s not exactly ideal.
American’s A321XLR business class lavatory mess
If you ask me, the biggest issue with American’s new A321XLR is the extent to which this plane was designed with the sole focus on getting as efficient of a layout as possible.
The American A321XLR has one lavatory in the front of the plane, and three lavatories in the back of the plane. The people who are worst off are premium economy passengers, since there’s no dedicated lavatory for premium economy, so they either have to go to the very front or very back of the plane.
This is where the issue arises. On domestic flights, American allows passengers to use any lavatory on the plane. So you have the one forward lavatory shared between the pilots, the 20 business class passengers, and (more often than not), the premium economy passengers. That’s a horrible lavatory ratio.
On international flights, American asks passengers to use the lavatories in their ticketed cabin, and for premium economy, the designated lavatory is in economy. Still, think about it. This plane will operate transatlantic flights, and almost everyone will want to use the lavatory before landing, after waking up.
How are 20 people, plus the pilots (who so often want to use the lavatory shortly before landing), supposed to share one lavatory? It’s going to be a disaster.
How does that differ from JetBlue and Iberia? JetBlue has 24 business class suites, but opted to install two lavatories at the front of the aircraft, and also doesn’t have premium economy. Iberia has only 14 business class seats, with one lavatory, and there’s also no premium economy.
Is this all just an indictment of the Airbus A321XLR?
I can totally see how we got to the point where American has an A321XLR with TVs that can’t be used during service, and a terrible premium lavatory ratio:
- Airbus is of course selling a plane that’s extra long range, and is highlighting to airlines how great the economics can be for long and thin routes
- Seat manufacturers want to create efficient seats for these types of planes, since that’s what airlines want, so that a sufficient number of seats can be on the plane for the math to work
- US airlines have very high labor and operating costs, and of course American wants to optimize the configuration, to maximize revenue potential
Individually all of that sounds fine, but then when you step back and look at the big picture, you’re left with a plane that has direct aisle access from every business class seat, yet leaves passengers really unhappy.
I’ve written in the past more broadly about the A321XLR, and whether it’s a long haul game changer or a plane to avoid. Here’s the thing — if you’re flying this plane in a transatlantic market where there otherwise wouldn’t be nonstop flights, many people would find it worthwhile to deal with the worse product for the convenience of not connecting.
I think American’s strategic blunder is also putting these planes on its most competitive, transcontinental routes, where there are a ton of options. Why would you subject yourself to this if you don’t have to?
Before I rag on American too much, though, let me note that United also has A321XLRs coming soon, and they’re likely to have nearly all the same problems that American has. They also have 20 herringbone business class seats and 12 premium economy seats, with one lavatory at the front of the plane.
Honestly, maybe Delta had the right idea by saying no to this plane, since this just doesn’t feel like the future, in terms of comfort. It’ll be telling to see whether passengers just complain about the product but continue to fly it, or if they actually vote with their wallet.
Even Qantas, which recently took delivery of A321XLRs with a much less premium configuration, is already starting to retrofit these planes, to add lavatories. Passengers just aren’t happy.
Bottom line
I had the chance to fly American’s new A321XLR business class, and unfortunately it’s a far cry from American’s new 787-9P business class. Now, that’s not really surprising to me, since I knew to expect herringbone seats, which are otherwise out of style.
However, American obviously had a heavy focus on efficiency, to the point that passengers can’t even view their personal entertainment screens head-on during the meal service. And that says nothing of the lavatory mess.
I’ve flown a lot of new products shortly after launch, but I’ve never witnessed such a negative reaction from other passengers in the cabin, especially without any sort of a prompting. I didn’t hear a single passenger on the plane say a good thing about the cabin or seats.
What’s your take on American’s A321XLR business class? Do you think passengers will vote with their wallets and avoid these planes, or just put up with it?
Did United to write this? People love Jetblue Mint Suites.
I think I would rather sit in Premium Economy on most routes in this configuration. They aren't using these planes for that long of flights. I feel like business class products have been focused on providing privacy above space and comfort in recent years. From a pure seat comfort perspective, I think the most comfortable business class seat I have flown was the United 777-200 2-4-2 configuration. That product has tons of other drawbacks, but...
I think I would rather sit in Premium Economy on most routes in this configuration. They aren't using these planes for that long of flights. I feel like business class products have been focused on providing privacy above space and comfort in recent years. From a pure seat comfort perspective, I think the most comfortable business class seat I have flown was the United 777-200 2-4-2 configuration. That product has tons of other drawbacks, but I will take that over claustrophobia.
It looks like this is a discount quality product. As long as American advertises the new business class as such and prices accordingly that's fine. Unfortunately this is American we're talking about though, so doing the right or even sensible thing is unlikely.
Flew on AA's XLR roundtrip JFK-LAX in PE. First row is where it's all. Pretty comfy. Even managed to sleep on the red eye. While I didn't appreciate the trek to the restrooms in the back, I didn't have to wait either.
What a silly comment in the article that 20 passengers and pilots only use the forward toilet. Do the Cabin crew working in the forward galley not use the toilet as well.
Ben,
You forgot to mention this fact, and that's because you never sit in coach let alone know where it is. The seat pitch on this aircraft that AA has is about 32in, and i found that perfectly fine for the transcon flight. Infact I could easily do another 2 hours on this seat configuration going trans Atlantic. Now I would rather sot in premium econ in thois config than business class. I do...
Ben,
You forgot to mention this fact, and that's because you never sit in coach let alone know where it is. The seat pitch on this aircraft that AA has is about 32in, and i found that perfectly fine for the transcon flight. Infact I could easily do another 2 hours on this seat configuration going trans Atlantic. Now I would rather sot in premium econ in thois config than business class. I do find those BC seats to be too tight, and I prefer a window and dont want to twist my neck
US airlines = the way the country thinks of itself
Wouldn't exist if it wasn't for protectionism
Regarding the seats being tight, how fat do Americans want and need to be?
Americans are fat, so our airlines should be more accommodating. I had a seat on an older Delta 767 where I couldn't lay flat because my shoulders wouldn't fit.
It’s not about big bellies. My arms need to go somewhere! The walls are the issue. I’m 6’3” and 160 lbs. I’d rather fly economy than this trollop
Repurpose these for more day time flights to Europe
Ben, the visceral reaction you witnessed is the inevitable result of Mission Profile Mismatch.
American (and United) fell into the trap of treating the A321XLR as a direct replacement for 757/767s on existing trunk routes, rather than what Airbus designed it for: opening new, thin secondary markets where the "nonstop" factor outweighs the hard product. When you deploy this asset on JFK-LAX or JFK-LHR, you are competing against widebody expectations with a narrowbody compromise.
The...
Ben, the visceral reaction you witnessed is the inevitable result of Mission Profile Mismatch.
American (and United) fell into the trap of treating the A321XLR as a direct replacement for 757/767s on existing trunk routes, rather than what Airbus designed it for: opening new, thin secondary markets where the "nonstop" factor outweighs the hard product. When you deploy this asset on JFK-LAX or JFK-LHR, you are competing against widebody expectations with a narrowbody compromise.
The engineering constraints of the XLR—specifically the rear center tank and the Airbus Cabin Flex (ACF) door logic—force brutal trade-offs. To make the CASM math work against soaring pilot labor costs, AA had to densify the J cabin to 20 seats. But in doing so, they maximized the LOPA (Layout of Passenger Accommodations) at the expense of the psychological experience. A herringbone layout in a single-aisle tube creates a "coffin" effect that no amount of door privacy can fix.
This is precisely why Delta’s decision to pass on the XLR in favor of extending the 767-300ER/400ER and A330neo fleets is validating itself in real-time. Delta recognized that High-Value Customers (HVCs) on premium transcons aren't just buying a flat bed; they are paying for air volume and flow. A dual-aisle aircraft absorbs the chaos of service carts and lavatory queues in a way a narrowbody simply cannot.
American built a plane for PHL-Naples and deployed it on JFK-Los Angeles. The market will punish this. I expect these frames to be exiled to secondary transatlantic seasonal routes within 18 months, while Delta continues to dominate the premium transcon yields with proper widebody lift.
well said.
and let's remember that DL started the post covid increase in wages across all workforces after AA and UA committed to the XLR.
Kirby and co. love to say that ULCC models don't work at current labor rates but few are willing to consider that higher labor costs make some of the things that AA and UA do no longer economically viable.
DL's decision to fly fewer ASMs - which means leaving...
well said.
and let's remember that DL started the post covid increase in wages across all workforces after AA and UA committed to the XLR.
Kirby and co. love to say that ULCC models don't work at current labor rates but few are willing to consider that higher labor costs make some of the things that AA and UA do no longer economically viable.
DL's decision to fly fewer ASMs - which means leaving some lower profit business on the table - is what allows them to be as profitable as they are.
Even the Euro carriers aren't trying to put lie flat business plus premium economy plus economy and have more than 150 seats which is what it takes to keep CASM from going off the charts.
At Tim aka NickW.
100% wrong.
"This is precisely why Delta’s decision to pass on the XLR in favor of extending the 767-300ER/400ER and A330neo fleets is validating itself in real-time. "
So do tell us Nostradamus, what airplane is DL going to replace the ancient 767s with on these transcon markets? Let me guess, the A350-1000!
HVC are corporate slaves and will fly whoever they are told to fly. They might not like...
At Tim aka NickW.
100% wrong.
"This is precisely why Delta’s decision to pass on the XLR in favor of extending the 767-300ER/400ER and A330neo fleets is validating itself in real-time. "
So do tell us Nostradamus, what airplane is DL going to replace the ancient 767s with on these transcon markets? Let me guess, the A350-1000!
HVC are corporate slaves and will fly whoever they are told to fly. They might not like the seat, but they'll get over it for a 5 hour flight. And AA and UA know it.
Let's hope Delta uses the A350-1000 to replace their 767s. They would get my business over these horrible aisle-facing seats every time. I've flown hundreds of transoceanic business and first class segments, and only one of those was in this type of seat (Virgin Atlantic). It will hopefully be the last. I would prefer a DL 767-400 over these any day.
Why MUST American always suck? Can they do anything right? It's like they are...
Let's hope Delta uses the A350-1000 to replace their 767s. They would get my business over these horrible aisle-facing seats every time. I've flown hundreds of transoceanic business and first class segments, and only one of those was in this type of seat (Virgin Atlantic). It will hopefully be the last. I would prefer a DL 767-400 over these any day.
Why MUST American always suck? Can they do anything right? It's like they are trying to be horrible. "Going for awful!"
What you're really saying is that Boeing messed up (and they did); Airbus is winning off this; XLR is a reasonable replacement for the 757 (not the 767, that's where 339 or 787 comes in); as 220 is for 717, another example of Airbus eating Boeing's lunch.
All said, I'm convinced NickW is commenter Mike Hunt from VFTW, and, oddly, Tim is quick to reply, in agreement, here, as there, quite often.
Hi, tim…
I’m not going to be satisfied with the review or enjoy the comments until 1990 says something.
Your rent is past-due!! Pay up!!
Shut up you toolbag. It’s not your blog.
Do majority of those who fly really look at the aircraft type before booking ? It’s not that we have too many choices either.
Majority? No absolutely not. Do some of us myself included actually check the type of plane for long routes and factor that into booking decisions? Absolutely.
OT, but why is your enterainment screen saying "weicome" in Finnish?
I experienced this aircraft and will be avoiding it. Yet another own-goal from American.
We are truly bereft of good airline options in this country -- the crew have always been awful but now they are taking the hard product too.
I know I'm biased, but transcons should ONLY be flown by wide-bodies. I tolerated the previous A321T's because it was a much more modern product than the old 762's. But this is such a needless misstep. You don't need the extra range from the XLR on a transcon flight and the benefit of more space on an widebody naturally lends itself to feel more premium. I can't believe I'd rather fly Delta's old ass 763 over a brand new seat.
I have a hard time believing this. People don’t speak like this to complete strangers. Even in Economy people rarely complain to strangers. Especially the hooking up part, that’s unhinged behavior. This reads like those made up redditor stories.
I’m surprised this blog post didn’t end with Scott Kirby bursting through the gate giving out free COASTLINER upgrades (and then everybody clapped).
So when I first saw photos of these I feared they were a redo of the Cathay Upper Deck 747 Herringbone Biz class seats....incredibly uncomfortable from the torso upwards due to the narrow nature of the seat and the side walls. Ben, have my fears been confirmed?
I have found jetBlue's Mint suites to be very comfortable on transcon and Europe-NYC routes. Will be interesting to assess actual measurements and see how much is perception vs reality vs B6/IB. Regardless, I do hope AA will modify these to at least include 5-6 rows of MCE. DL and UA are planning a better product in back for their transcon sub-fleets.
XLR seems comparable to the newer B6 Mint. More MCE would be an improvement. Regular economy is already better than most AA narrowbodies because they actually have IFE screens on XLR, like the a321T did (and, now, free WiFi). These aircraft are already more like Delta with all those 'amenities'... *cough*
I flew UA Polaris on a 787 for the very first time last month, and I thought the seat was the worst biz class in a long time (the Polaris lounges at IAD and EWR on the other hand were great although BA's lounge in MIA is better IMHO).
My main complaint with Polaris (besides the very mediocre service) was that the entry from the aisle was extremely narrow. I wonder how the AA 321XLR compares in terms of the width of the entryway.
Apparently, you've never flown UA's 772 with the 2-4-2 rear-facing lie-flat actual 'coffin' seats. Sure, lie-flat is better than recliner which is better than a middle seat in the last row of economy with no recline near an over-flowing lavatory... but, to complain about Polaris on 787... who are you? Tim Dunn??
There are people that aren't part of the UA cult that see UA for what it is just as should be the case for every company or idea.
Polaris is a high density product and you need only look at the amount of seats they put in the same space as other carriers with other business class products to see that you can put fancy words around any product but it all kinds down to...
There are people that aren't part of the UA cult that see UA for what it is just as should be the case for every company or idea.
Polaris is a high density product and you need only look at the amount of seats they put in the same space as other carriers with other business class products to see that you can put fancy words around any product but it all kinds down to space.
AA and UA are some of the few global airlines that are trying to offer a smaller version of a widebody on a narrowbody.
Other carriers like B6 don't do a premium economy and so manage to get enough seats to matter. AA and UA are squeezing seats in order to make it all fit.
Note that DL is the only one of the big 3 (IIRC) that has less than 150 seats on their premium configured A321NEO
Tim, UA's Polaris (the real ones, not 757 or the old 772), AA's Flagship Business/First (787, 772, 773) and these new Flagship Suites, newer DeltaOne (on 359, 339, 764), and newer Mint, are all great and relatively comparable; they're the best hard products in the US, today. Why you trash actual Polaris is odd.
Why is reverse herringbone slightly less space efficient than herringbone?
This is the one thing I wish they'd done differently. Like, facing the window would've been better, in my opinion. Old a321T Flagship First faced the windows. Not sure why they went with this instead.
I really hated this plane! I now call it coffin class. The business seats are so narrow that sitting sideways on takeoff my head hit the wall. How could they sacrifice the windows? That decision is unforgivable. The first class lavatory was inoperable for the duration of my flight. This plane was a huge disappointment. Someone should be fired.
Ok, Mr. Amex... sure...
I don’t think this is a problem with the plane. It is more a problem that American and United (and Qantas too) took too big of a swing trying to create a very dense layout… and the compromise was too much for the passengers. They will most likely backtrack, as I don’t think passengers are quite ready for such a squeeze. JetBlue’s A321LR is a fine ride and everyone seems fine with it.
Do Iberia and Jet Blue require passengers to stow their television during meal service? I bet not.
Iberia did not when I flew the same plane last month.
This is a result of American having awful crew as usual. If they can't lean over a screen to provide meal service, how can they possibly be fit enough to assist in an emergency?
Time to clean house.
Looks fine to me.
American needs to clean house at corporate.
I flew in the Iberia version of this in January. Honestly, my biggest complaint about the layout is that all the plebs need to walk through business class in order to reach their seats. This meant no pre-flight beverage service because the aisle was clogged with poors. Did this happen with AA too?
My gosh, if a literal lie-flat suite with a door (*soon to be operable) on a narrowbody isn't enough distance from the so-called 'peasants'... you probably should just pay to fly yourself private.
Really Ben? New aircraft, new cabins and yet no improvement. One has to laugh …. people call AI out for being a poor ride and a third world airline. Can American even compete with AI?
AI is horrible airline with very poor safety records. You must be insane to fly them...
Huh? Are you joking?
They look like cages
Also less MCE seats. Terrible decisions and i’ve already tried to avoid this on the JFK to SFO route.
You're gonna make Peter's day. He's a huge MCE advocate.
Brett did it! He made my day… by pointing out yet another obvious failure of this plane! The XLR is a plane that is optimized for cargo with the RCT. The way AA configured it is really not great.
Got downgraded to a 787P in two months and watched the 4 MCE seats I booked turn into 3 because… no MCE on that plane either!
It’s almost as if AA has bad leadership or something.
Hey Ben, I was just on this aircraft with Iberia, no doors. Don't think you need to edit this post, but more a FYI.
Judging from the pictures, the walls in JetBlue's Mint are much lower. When you have walls on both sides, you don't want them to be too high.
Is that the only real difference between the Flagship Suite and newer Mint? If so, these are great, because Mint is excellent. More privacy (higher walls) seems better, not worse.
Further proof that time is cyclical and that AA never learns. Anyone remember the Oasis disaster?
This is nothing like Oasis. These are lie-flat suites; Oasis was recliners and economy without IFE. The Flagship Suite on the XLR is leaps and bounds better than Oasis, and honestly, nothing like it.
?
You're missing the point. AA yet again rolled out a crappy, untested product that will get terrible net promoter scores and require (expensive) modification to correct.
Looking forward to the full review. I booked the XLR for my flight home (via LAX) after a long trip to Asia in September (also extending the trip one more night to do so). Maybe I'll just take the nonstop home instead and skip the overnight, but have plenty of time to decide.
This doesn't surprise me -- from the perspective of a normal flyer who doesn't obsess over these things as much as we do, the key difference here is it's a narrow body plane, and that feels much more cramped. Passengers are absolutely going to prefer wide bodies. Of course, a passenger would probably prefer a narrow-body direct flight over a wide-body connecting flight, but like I flew the A321XLR from IAD to MAD -- that's not exactly a marginal route!
The premium economy seat looks much more appealing than business class.
By all means, please, give up your lie-flat for a recliner... oh wise one...
I'm actually with him. If I'm flying JFK-LAX during the daytime and don't need to sleep, I would be much more interested in (say) flying Premium Economy paying 40k miles than flying a crappy J product and paying 80k (often much more than that I imagine).
-Can sit next to my wife and talk to her
-Can look out the window
-Can watch the movie while I eat my meal
-Looks honestly more spacious
Wonderful, Jimmy. Please, give up your lie-flat. More for those of us who want to actually sleep on a redeye. Have fun in the back with your wives! Psh.
Except there’s no mid-cabin lav. So in PE you’re walking to the back of the packed bus to use one of the 3 cramped bathrooms they put back there.
Why fly this product over a competitor? I don’t get the pitch.
Speaking of pitch, I still do not see the XLR listed on AA’s plane stat page. I know that page 2 of a pdf in the newsroom claims economy pitch is 32” but...
Except there’s no mid-cabin lav. So in PE you’re walking to the back of the packed bus to use one of the 3 cramped bathrooms they put back there.
Why fly this product over a competitor? I don’t get the pitch.
Speaking of pitch, I still do not see the XLR listed on AA’s plane stat page. I know that page 2 of a pdf in the newsroom claims economy pitch is 32” but will be fascinated once the stats are posted more publicly (if it really is 32” of pitch in economy, why wouldn’t AA be touting that?)
Peter, we're gonna have to fly it, bring measuring tape, and report back. I'm rooting for more MCE, regardless!
Specifically stated a westbound day flight but hey, by all means get immature instead of having an actual discussion
An 'actual discussion'? Like they one you'll be having with your spouse in those recliners? Aww.
You are correct and I would pick PE as well for the reasons you listed. Ignore the divas that think that only the "best" or most expensive can satisfy their delusional egos.
trying to put a smaller ratio of what is on a widebody on a narrowbody just isn't going to work for all the reasons you mention.
DL is going w/ a much smaller number of A321NEOs for domestic premium use than AA and UA.
Given that the A321XLR has fairly poor takeoff performance, there really is no operational advantage to a narrowbody other than fewer seats which just results in higher unit costs that a widebody can easily beat
And yet, it's objectively better to have lie-flat than a recliner or an economy middle seat. So, these 'whiners' that Ben described are really silly; it's more likely that they just couldn't handle 'change.'
it's a compromised solution. and people don't see compromise as progress, nor should they.
Tim, I don't care which airline it is... ALL of them that target the premium market should have lie-flat up-front, including narrowbodies and widebodies, especially if operating 5+ hour flights on redeyes, like these XLR, 737max can and should do. To resort to mere recliners is weak.
thankfully, the people that have to be given the capital to run airlines have to at least create the idea that they can use assets to make money.
You prove that you are a socialist and not in any way capable of running anything.
Tim, this has nothing to do with economic theories; it has everything to do with offering the best available premium product for passengers. If Delta's gonna revert to more recliners while American, United, and jetBlue do more lie-flat, wave goodbye to that premium customer.
I’ve flown in J on the XLR. It’s a perfectly fine product. I’m 6’1” and 180. I’m sure the people complaining about the size of the seat are what the industry calls “customers of size”
Ben, you've flown jetBlue's newer Mint, which has a very similar configuration and seat (1:1). How is this really all that different? I like that, and perhaps, people are just whining for the sake of whining. It's also not that different from Flagship First on the old a321T (1:1), just a little narrower.
If you read the article, you would have picked up on what Ben says the differences are: JetBlue Mint isn't pitched quite as tight and there's two lavs in the front of the aircraft.
I'd argue that it is in fact quite a bifferent from 32T Flagship First given that aircraft also has two lavs in the general area (forward and mid-cabin) and it's a reverse herringbone configuration.
If only I could read... No, my question is beyond what Ben already wrote.
Ok, so, to you, Taylor, it's all about the lavs, eh? Well, fact check: Not all newer Mint have the two lavs in front (yes, 3NL type does have 2 in-front, but, 3NS types does not; it has 1 in front, 1 behind Mint at engines).
Compared to the a321T, I'd argue XLR is better, simply, because it's not falling...
If only I could read... No, my question is beyond what Ben already wrote.
Ok, so, to you, Taylor, it's all about the lavs, eh? Well, fact check: Not all newer Mint have the two lavs in front (yes, 3NL type does have 2 in-front, but, 3NS types does not; it has 1 in front, 1 behind Mint at engines).
Compared to the a321T, I'd argue XLR is better, simply, because it's not falling apart. Several times in the past couple years I've literally had broken seats in F that had to be manually lowered to lie-flat and raised by crew for landing.