Airlines are always looking for ways to segment their consumer base, in order to get as much revenue from each passenger as possible. Over the years, we’ve seen just about all major US airlines introduce extra legroom economy seating, intended both as a reward for elite member, and as an ancillary revenue opportunity.
Continue reading: Guide To American Airlines Main Cabin Extra: Is It Worth It?
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
Have absolutely found value in the years I've had status and received complimentary MCE and definitely have forked over the cash for it in years I didn't have status and had flights with block time longer than two hours and found it a worthwhile use of my discretionary income. Don't forget it also means you get off the plane sooner!
Flying Transatlantic on one of the AA 777-200s you WANT to get out of standard Main Cabin seats! They call it 30" pitch, but it's more like 28". 11 hours from LHR to LAX is painful!
They actually call it 31-32” in the main cabin seats of the 777-200er, because it is. But I agree. 11 hours in the back isn’t fun on any plane.
As someone who is 6’5” and doesn’t fly enough for status, it really irks me that a bare minimum of simply being able to sit in the seat (let alone comfortably) is an extra charge. All airlines are guilty of this, not just AA so I’m not picking on them, they just happen to be the subject of this post. It’s not like I’m taking the space out of the seat beside me so the extra charge is hardly justifiable when I can’t help the length of my legs.
In a perfect world a certain amount of seats would be blocked off from booking until a tall person presents themselves at the gate for complimentary assignment (let’s put aside exit row requirements for the moment and suppose those are otherwise met). But I guess that means less revenue so some bean counter at HQ might get a smaller bonus this quarter, and we can’t have that!!
Typo in the penultimate paragraph here, assume you meant "a lot more space" rather than "a lot more seats": "In some cases it might not be that much more than a Main Cabin Extra seat, but it offers a lot more seats."
If you fly AA a good amount of the time, it could be worth looking into whether you could qualify for Gold via non-flying means -- AA makes it far easier to do that than other carriers (shopping portals, SimplyMiles, AA Hotels, etc.). As someone who's tall too, having AA status so I am never stuck in a regular size seat has made flying so much more pleasant (but I'm in an AA-dominant city; if you aren't, having the status and therefore the MCE benefit becomes a more complicated calculation).
Do OW Emerald Elites (via AA) get preferred seats on British Airways? By preferred seats I mean the extra legroom seats rather than just being able to select seats for free at time of booking. I know that OW Emerald Elites are able to select seats for free on BA at time of booking but are those seats just regular seats or are they "special" equivalent to MCE seats on AA. TIA!
Forgot the best part, Ben: premium economy being classified as MCE for domestic widebody flights
I actually prefer the exit row over First Class, which has more pitch than F - plus the seat in front can't recline. AA has reduced the seat pitch for FC from what it was before the USAir merger.
I got a couple MCE seats on a BOS-MIA flight a couple years ago on a 777. And I believe there were just 2 seats together in the row I selected so no 3rd person!
I recently upgraded to MCE on a fairly short flight for cash. I ordered 2 wines when service came around. As far as I can tell you can only order when the FA's do beverage service, there was no way for addtional order. This wasn't an issue for me since it was a short flight, but on a longer flight I would like to have them check once in a while.
This is not true. One can order alcoholic beverage after the first service. I prefer to go to the galley and pick one. I have been enjoying extra alcoholic beverage since MCE option started. This is possible with domestic and international.
Am I misreading this article? It seems to imply that one is eligible for complimentary upgrade to Main Cabin Extra on AA with oneWorld Sapphire status. I'm oneWorld Sapphire (through Alaska Airlines, which according to the article is okay), and just booked a reservation this month, but it's making me pay for those seats.
It *does* let me choose Preferred in Economy. Does it matter that I used my Alaska Airlines FF number and not my AA FF number? Or maybe they just can't figure out that I'm oneWorld Sapphire?
Never mind - I confirmed on their website ( https://www.aa.com/i18n/travel-info/experience/seats/main-cabin-extra.jsp) my reading of the article is correct. It looks like they're just recognizing my status. So just waiting a few hours for my callback from customer support to clear that up....
Would have been better than 1st Class on two recent DFW MSP, MSP DFW flights. $800 per flight for potato chips and ginger ale. 3 min short of required two hours to get a lunch. Top it off , both directions, screaming babies in next seat with coach fare parent upgrades! Awful.
Thanks American ! No more!
Short females still will complain about lack of space. Men taller than six feet always have to pay extra for this space, with no lobby like the body positive lobby to help out
I bought a Main Cabin ticket from Ft. Lauderdale to Philadelphia. My receipt documented one extra free bag. No one at Ft. Lauderdale check in ever heard of a Main Cabin ticket. I was forced to pay $40 to check my bag. I have been calling and writing to AA for six weeks. I have not been able to get my $40 refunded.
According to airline seating websites, only Jet Blue offers acceptable leg space in their economy section (32" pitch, which is down from 34" when they started). Delta is at 31" and American and United are at 30", although I could swear that a transatllantic flight from Boston to Paris and from Amsterdam to Boston on Delta had less than 31" pitch as my knees were jammed into the seatback in front of me and I had difficulty walking straight after deboarding as my knees and hips were killing me from having sat at an angle with one leg out in the aisle and that foot turned inward so it wouldn't get stepped on or run ove by a cart. Absolute disgrace to have seats that tight on an overnight international flight. These people have no shame.
How did you watch a movie if the seat in front is far ahead of you? Was the food tray that pulls out big enough?
My wife and I flew American Airlines earlier this week, we paid for Main Plus, but we’re not in Main Plus seating!! What can I do about this, the seating is was not good