US Airways Dividend Miles (Pre-FlightFund Merger) - 757 (and narrow body a/c) question again

Sorry to bring this up again but what is the preferred seating in a 757 in the back?

I have booked 7D&F for my friend and I when we go SEA-CLT. Is this better than 8A-C? The leg room seems limited because of the closet for this pair.

Also booked the emergency exit row of a 737-200(non-Metrojet!), 737-400 and A319. Is this preferable to bulkead seating? I seem to remember the bulkhead legroom is a little limited in the A319 (haven't sat bulkhead in the 737s since 1992-3).

Hope this all becomes moot if we get upgraded!

On the 757, seats 8A, 8B, and 8C have more room than 7D & F. Those 5, however, are the best in coach.

Originally posted by terenz:
Sorry to bring this up again but what is the preferred seating in a 757 in the back?

I have booked 7D&F for my friend and I when we go SEA-CLT. Is this better than 8A-C? The leg room seems limited because of the closet for this pair.

Also booked the emergency exit row of a 737-200(non-Metrojet!), 737-400 and A319. Is this preferable to bulkead seating? I seem to remember the bulkhead legroom is a little limited in the A319 (haven't sat bulkhead in the 737s since 1992-3).

Hope this all becomes moot if we get upgraded!

I actually prefer 7D and 7F. 8A-C, you get to stare at the FA the entire time - regardless of the inherent beauty or ugliness of the FA.

Watch out for the exit row on the Metrojet craft. Had a flight a few months back where the exit row turned out to be the row in front of the exit row. I don't know if they've harmonized this yet.

I'd go with 8 A-C as there's more leg room than in 7 D-F. 8 A-C is the exit row for 2L and the only problem you have to deal with is the bumping from other passengers boarding (assuming you're pre-boarding). Of course, as you're on a 757 - more opportunities to upgrade with the 24 seats, and I'm with you - upgrade if the opportunity presents itself. But I seem to remember that you've didn't have a problem with coach on the transcons when you did this run before.

Good luck and enjoy the trip to our neck of the woods.

[This message has been edited by CLTFlyer (edited 09-26-2000).]

Every time I book a flight with US I request 8A/C or 7D/F. All are good seats but I would only take 8A if nothing else is available. There is usually a slight draft by the door and mid flight you start to feel cold. Also, when the door is closed part of it bumps up against your left knee.

Geo & CLTFlyer:

Did think about 8B&C but figure that there would be more shoulder room in trade for less legroom. CLTFLyer - yes, I've survived 4 transcontinentals in US coach this year but not out of choice. Wish me luck on the upgrades!

Pacman:
Agreed, those 2 seats are cold and the slide does get in the way (not as bad as on a 747 though. Have done SEA-PIT in 8A and 8F.

ITrade:

No Metrojet a/c involved. I was surprised there are 737-200s that are still used in mainline US operations (thought they were all in Metrojet).

There are plenty of 732s (737-200s) in mainline. I've flown them four times in my last ten flights on US. They really are kinda odd planes, IMHO.

maybe we could post a thread with the best seats on all the US Air planes.

Since some of us are stuck riding coach, we could benefit.

Thanks

dg1 is on point about the -200s. From what I remember, they're slated to be retired from mainline this year and move to MetroJet. I've had a couple of flights on 'em lately (to YYZ and from EWR) - so they're still handling the short hauls. Of course, the DC-9-30s and the MD80s are also slated to be retired this year - and I won't miss 'em a bit. Now if only they could ditch the F100s. But they painted them in the new livery, so they'll stay around for a while.

terenz: good luck on the upgrades - hope ITN shows a lot of "G" availability right before your window opens.

Originally posted by Cadillac:
maybe we could post a thread with the best seats on all the US Air planes.

Since some of us are stuck riding coach, we could benefit.


Post the question! Or we can continue it here:

737-200/300 row 9 - emergency exit
row 4 - bulkhead (good for short
flights or if you have
a tight connection as
leg room is tight

737-400 row 10 - emergency exit
row 4 - bulkhead

A319 row 9 - emergency exit
row 3 - bulkhead. leg room
better than in 737s

767-200 - avoid the overwing emergency exit seats. Leg room is very limited. Centre seats are good. Also avoid the last row in the forward cabin.

The F100s are relatively new planes from what I understand so we'll probably see them for a while. They should refurbish them to give them more standard overhead capacity and make first class a smidge more comfortable.

Best seat on any plane is my seat in 2D. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif
I've sat in 2D in the last thirty flights I've been on. Sheesh...

Originally posted by dg1:
The F100s are relatively new planes from what I understand so we'll probably see them for a while. They should refurbish them to give them more standard overhead capacity and make first class a smidge more comfortable.

Best seat on any plane is my seat in 2D. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif
I've sat in 2D in the last thirty flights I've been on. Sheesh...

Points to make about several posts. Re: 737-200s. They should be gone by YE 2001 - at least from mainline. The ones slated for removal are the old -201 series with JT8D-9A engines. Then the Metrojet 732s will start disappearing and will be replaced by 737-300s from mainline. In the long run, this will probably be a good deal as the 737-300s are more efficient craft.

Re: DC-9-30s and MD-80s. I will actually miss both craft for several reasons. The DC-9-30s have good leg room in the main cabin. Both the DC-9-30 and MD-80s have the 2 side (A-C) which I prefer over a 3x3 configuration. Finally, the MD-80s are ex-PSA birds which was my home carrier for many years. Somewhere buried under that aluminum and paint are the PSA smiles . . .

The DC-9-30s continue retirement and should be gone by YE 2001. The MD-80s are next but probably won't be gone until 2002.

Re: F-100s. They are apparently a very expensive craft to run. Pricey engines and pricey in that they are an odd series of craft in a fleet being streamlined. Despite the fact, US really needs a craft with about 100 seats or risk gross overcapacity on the thin routes. Perhaps US should consider dumping the F-100s for 717s which apparently have received good reviews from both passengers and from the airlines on operational standpoints.

Oddly enough, the whole issue of US buying 717s has come up before on PlaneBusiness' board (and maybe here too - I'm having a senior moment). At one time, some thought it was a done deal for US to buy 717s at a low price to replace the DC-9s (never did materialize before merger announcement). However, such a plan flies in the face of the goal of fleet rationalization (e.g. the 320 family) and also the bad blood between Boeing and US in the wake of the 427 (?) crash. Of course, the 318 could solve the 100 passenger plane issue.

I've heard that the F100s are a pain to operate and maintain. But US got a good deal on those in the late '80s - early '90s - so be it - and so they're there. Always problematic when the manfacturer goes out of business after you've bought their product. I think the interiors could use a revamp. And if the merger happens - they're probably on their way out then.

ITRADE: I had always wondered where the MD80s came from.

Originally posted by CLTFlyer:
Oddly enough, the whole issue of US buying 717s has come up before on PlaneBusiness' board (and maybe here too - I'm having a senior moment). At one time, some thought it was a done deal for US to buy 717s at a low price to replace the DC-9s (never did materialize before merger announcement). However, such a plan flies in the face of the goal of fleet rationalization (e.g. the 320 family) and also the bad blood between Boeing and US in the wake of the 427 (?) crash. Of course, the 318 could solve the 100 passenger plane issue.

The problems that I've come to agree with re: A-318s are the following:
A-318s will not be available for a couple years. The 717s are available now.
A-318s while common type rating will most likely have some differences from their larger siblings - engines to name one of them (the CFM-56-5B4 is way overpowered for a A-318).
Performance data on the A-318 is completely unknown whereas it has been proven with the 717.
The A-318 is a HEAVY plane given its capacity. This may adversely affect issues like landing fees and fuel.

I do agree that the A-318 pilot and crew commonalities are significant factors given that you have the freedom to swap out an A-320 with an A-318 if the loads are real light, but the operational costs seem to be not as convincing.

Reading through the thread, I did not find specific seat recommendations (i.e. with number/letter) for the A330 and 767 (terenz - your note was a bit cryptic - are you saying only the center seats on the front exit row on the 767 are any good? Is any exit row seat on 767 better than another seat in coach?).
Doing a search with seat, coach, and exit only brought up this thread.
Does anyone have any suggestions?
I usually like to have extra legroom. On the eastbound transatlantic, ease of sleeping is also important (i.e. a seat with bright lights right in front isn´t conducive).
Yonatan

[This message has been edited by yonatan (edited 10-12-2000).]

Originally posted by yonatan:
Reading through the thread, I did not find specific seat recommendations (i.e. with number/letter) for the A330 and 767 (terenz - your note was a bit cryptic - are you saying only the center seats on the front exit row on the 767 are any good? Is any exit row seat on 767 better than another seat in coach?).
Doing a search with seat, coach, and exit only brought up this thread.
Does anyone have any suggestions?
I usually like to have extra legroom. On the eastbound transatlantic, ease of sleeping is also important (i.e. a seat with bright lights right in front isn´t conducive).
Yonatan

[This message has been edited by yonatan (edited 10-12-2000).]

OK. Having now done the transatlantic bit on the A-330, I can probably give you some recommendations. If you're stuck in Y, try to get a bulkhead if they're giving them out. 21C,D,E,F. (D&E are center seats). All four have lots of leg room with the advantage of C and F having aisle and legroom. Your one drawback to these seats is that 1) there is not much overhead room form them and 2) folks will try to cut across your legs to cross from aisle to the other and 3) there may be people standing around you waiting for the toilet.

Personally, my favorite is 1B which I had a few days back!

Thanks - I see you don´t recommend the window or adjacent seats - how does their legroom compare to that of the middle block seats that you recommended?
Are bulkhead seats not given out in advance even to elites?
Yonatan

Originally posted by yonatan:
Thanks - I see you don´t recommend the window or adjacent seats - how does their legroom compare to that of the middle block seats that you recommended?
Are bulkhead seats not given out in advance even to elites?
Yonatan

I didn't reccomend the window/aisle pair as my first preference would be the bulkhead. However, if comparing to a middle seat in the middle of the section versus window/aisle seats in the aircraft, the window/aisle seats will win every time.

As to bulkhead seats, they might be blocked off for elites - not sure. Or, they may be held for families with infants. At least on domestic flights, the bulkhead seats on the 737/Airbii (4A - 4F) are usually available for elites.

Originally posted by yonatan:
[B]terenz - your note was a bit cryptic - are you saying only the center seats on the front exit row on the 767 are any good? Is any exit row seat on 767 better than another seat in coach?).


There are only 3 exit rows on a 767-200 and the only ones with pax right at them are the overwing exits. As I said, the seat pair by the window exits are extremely tight as you're placed right against the washroom bulkhead. I have to say it's the tightest leg room seat I've sat in AFAIR. The centre-three seats have quite a bit more leg room as the seats are staggered and/or the galley bulkhead doesn't come back so far as the washroom bulkhead IIRC. Not sure if any seats are better. The first row after Envoy/business cabin may have a full-height partition.