LAX-MIA-EZE in AA Flagship First (with pics)
Apr 10, 2008, 12:20 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: LAX
Programs: AA Plat, DL, NWA US, BA
Posts: 88
LAX-MIA-EZE in AA Flagship First (with pics)
This will be my first Trip Report. Having followed the forums and various other trip reports, I was very excited to cash in my miles for a trip to Argentina this March on AA's 777 in Flagship First. I have had to travel abroad for business several times in the past few years and always walked with envy past the First and Business sections of the planes to my seat in the back (I work for a non-profit org), and so anticipated my ride up front giddily.
When I originally booked my flight, all of the legs were on the 777, with the exception of LAX-MIA, which was an 8am departure on a 757. Based on much of the feedback in here, I thought it might be a good idea to call up and try my luck at getting on the 777 midday flight. I also hoped for the added benefit of getting a little more sleep the night before my trip! And lastly, I hoped to get the most value possible out of the extra miles I was spending to fly First all the way on 3 class aircraft, rather than on a 2 class.
I called in January, and, amazingly, I was in luck! Midday flight on 777 was available... but...only in Business. The Aagent gave me hope though that I could move up by checking back in, and at least I was on the flight that I wanted! And, worst case scenario, I might get to compare NGBC to the Suites. I called a couple more times in the months and the night before my flight, but no luck so far.
Finally the big travel day arrived! March 14. I began with arrival at LAX, breezing past the winding Economy Class lines, past the Business Class counter, to First Check In! And of course promptly watch all of the lines around me move rapidly while I am stuck behind one loud, obnoxious family with so much luggage, they looked like the English travelling party from A Passage to India.
Once at the counter, I again inquired about the availability of First for the LAX-MIA leg, and the check in aagent looked it up, and confirmed that First was full, but I should check at the AC again. Oh well, I was pretty much resigned to Business class for my first leg, and at least happy that it was in the order it was, rather than having to move down to BC at the end of the trip! Check in completed, security quickly cleared, after the obligatory shoe removal excercise, and I was off to the Admiral's Club.
On my check in to the AC, I first had to wait behind the same family who were in front of me at the First check in! Oy! Once I got the the counter, the Aangel looked at my record and said- "I see you're supposed to be on the waitlist for First to Miami." Then, handing me a key card, added "Here's the key for the Flaghip Lounge. You can check at the counter in there on your status." I so I approached the super secret MI:5 doors to the FL and swiped my card. Voila!
I have to say, other than the extreme friendliness of the Aangels at the FL counter, the most exciting thing about the FL was using the card to make the magic doors slide open, and the feeling of exclusivity. As you can see from the photos, it looks very similar to the rest of the AC.
Well, the bathrooms were a step above the AC as well:
There was some limited food set out, all cold, and not like the spreads I have heard about on the forums, and certainly not like the spread they talk about in the non-US carriers forums.
I overhead one of the Aangels explain to another FL guest that AA was changing caterers, so that was why there was limited catering in the FL for now.
Anyways, after heading out to the main AC to check email, and then exploring the AC and FL a bit more, I settled in to a snack and drink, and the NY Times and USA Today that were on the rack. It came time for my flight to board, and so I checked one last time on the status of my upgrade. The Aangel looked at my BP and checked the computer, then directed my to get to the gate as quickly as I could. "Not everyone in First has checked in. I think you're going to get it. Have a great flight, it's a wonderful aircraft!"
I made my way to the gate and handed my bp to the Gate Aagent. She held onto it, and I stepped aside as there was a throng of passengers crowding her with their own upgrade requests. I overheard bits of the Aagent's conversation, enough to surmise that their was one seat left in First, and a bit of back and forth over who it should go to. A moment later, I heard MY name called into the microphone, and she handed me my next BP, in First seat 2G! I walked onto the plane, and heard the words I had been waiting for since I first began flying and knew that there was a land apart from where I usually flew in the back... "Good morning, please turn LEFT to get to your seat."
I couldn't believe this was actually my seat!
I settled in, exploring every inch of the Suite, and starting trying to make sense of the controls. Once aloft, I move my seat into position, and started using the controls. The service seemed almost like a restaurant, in that the FA's seemed to be taking responsibilty for specific people, rather than what I usually see where everyone just does what needs to be done. The FA who seemed to be assigned to my section was one of the most outstanding I have ever encountered. Before we even took off, he had taken lunch orders and video orders for those who wanted to use the tape system. I chose Juno. As I started trying to figure out where to put the tape and how to work the controls, it must have been clear that it was my first time, and he was very sweet in helping me get it going.
The meal service then began.
MENU
To Start
Warm mixed Nuts
or
Marinated Cheese Antipasto
(I had both)
The Salad Cart
Fresh seasonal greens with an assortment of fresh vegetables offered with Caesar Dressing or Castello Monte Vibiano Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar
(I asked which dressing he reccomended, and he stated "The castello Vibiano dressing is surprisingly good, for American")
Bread Basket
Assorted gourmet breads
Soup du Jour
Pumkin Bisque
(actually pretty good)
Entrees
Roasted Chicken and Swiss Sandwich
Roasted chicken and Swiss Cheese accented by Chipotle spread
Herbed Shrimp
Shrimp sauteed with Basil and Parsley served chilled with a lemon pastis vinaigrette, asparagus, couscous and cherry tomatoes
(I opted for the shrimp, feeling like somehow eating a sandwhich in First just wasn't worthy of the experience. The shrimp were fine.)
The Dessert Cart
Ice Cream Sundae
or
Fruit and Cheese
(I went for the Sundae)
You can kind of make out behind me in the picture that the seat behind me was broken, so they were one seat down in the section.
After lunch, I settled in to watch the rest of Juno. The sound was pretty bad, but I was able to get through most of it ok. I then took advantage of the lie flat feature of the Suite and got a couple hours of sleep.
The rest of the flight was uneventful. We had to wait about 30 minutes in MIA for a gate, which seems pretty typical for AA. The cabin crew for the entire flight was exemplary, and set the standard for the rest of the trip.
MIA-EZE follows in the next post
When I originally booked my flight, all of the legs were on the 777, with the exception of LAX-MIA, which was an 8am departure on a 757. Based on much of the feedback in here, I thought it might be a good idea to call up and try my luck at getting on the 777 midday flight. I also hoped for the added benefit of getting a little more sleep the night before my trip! And lastly, I hoped to get the most value possible out of the extra miles I was spending to fly First all the way on 3 class aircraft, rather than on a 2 class.
I called in January, and, amazingly, I was in luck! Midday flight on 777 was available... but...only in Business. The Aagent gave me hope though that I could move up by checking back in, and at least I was on the flight that I wanted! And, worst case scenario, I might get to compare NGBC to the Suites. I called a couple more times in the months and the night before my flight, but no luck so far.
Finally the big travel day arrived! March 14. I began with arrival at LAX, breezing past the winding Economy Class lines, past the Business Class counter, to First Check In! And of course promptly watch all of the lines around me move rapidly while I am stuck behind one loud, obnoxious family with so much luggage, they looked like the English travelling party from A Passage to India.
Once at the counter, I again inquired about the availability of First for the LAX-MIA leg, and the check in aagent looked it up, and confirmed that First was full, but I should check at the AC again. Oh well, I was pretty much resigned to Business class for my first leg, and at least happy that it was in the order it was, rather than having to move down to BC at the end of the trip! Check in completed, security quickly cleared, after the obligatory shoe removal excercise, and I was off to the Admiral's Club.
On my check in to the AC, I first had to wait behind the same family who were in front of me at the First check in! Oy! Once I got the the counter, the Aangel looked at my record and said- "I see you're supposed to be on the waitlist for First to Miami." Then, handing me a key card, added "Here's the key for the Flaghip Lounge. You can check at the counter in there on your status." I so I approached the super secret MI:5 doors to the FL and swiped my card. Voila!
I have to say, other than the extreme friendliness of the Aangels at the FL counter, the most exciting thing about the FL was using the card to make the magic doors slide open, and the feeling of exclusivity. As you can see from the photos, it looks very similar to the rest of the AC.
Well, the bathrooms were a step above the AC as well:
There was some limited food set out, all cold, and not like the spreads I have heard about on the forums, and certainly not like the spread they talk about in the non-US carriers forums.
I overhead one of the Aangels explain to another FL guest that AA was changing caterers, so that was why there was limited catering in the FL for now.
Anyways, after heading out to the main AC to check email, and then exploring the AC and FL a bit more, I settled in to a snack and drink, and the NY Times and USA Today that were on the rack. It came time for my flight to board, and so I checked one last time on the status of my upgrade. The Aangel looked at my BP and checked the computer, then directed my to get to the gate as quickly as I could. "Not everyone in First has checked in. I think you're going to get it. Have a great flight, it's a wonderful aircraft!"
I made my way to the gate and handed my bp to the Gate Aagent. She held onto it, and I stepped aside as there was a throng of passengers crowding her with their own upgrade requests. I overheard bits of the Aagent's conversation, enough to surmise that their was one seat left in First, and a bit of back and forth over who it should go to. A moment later, I heard MY name called into the microphone, and she handed me my next BP, in First seat 2G! I walked onto the plane, and heard the words I had been waiting for since I first began flying and knew that there was a land apart from where I usually flew in the back... "Good morning, please turn LEFT to get to your seat."
I couldn't believe this was actually my seat!
I settled in, exploring every inch of the Suite, and starting trying to make sense of the controls. Once aloft, I move my seat into position, and started using the controls. The service seemed almost like a restaurant, in that the FA's seemed to be taking responsibilty for specific people, rather than what I usually see where everyone just does what needs to be done. The FA who seemed to be assigned to my section was one of the most outstanding I have ever encountered. Before we even took off, he had taken lunch orders and video orders for those who wanted to use the tape system. I chose Juno. As I started trying to figure out where to put the tape and how to work the controls, it must have been clear that it was my first time, and he was very sweet in helping me get it going.
The meal service then began.
MENU
To Start
Warm mixed Nuts
or
Marinated Cheese Antipasto
(I had both)
The Salad Cart
Fresh seasonal greens with an assortment of fresh vegetables offered with Caesar Dressing or Castello Monte Vibiano Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar
(I asked which dressing he reccomended, and he stated "The castello Vibiano dressing is surprisingly good, for American")
Bread Basket
Assorted gourmet breads
Soup du Jour
Pumkin Bisque
(actually pretty good)
Entrees
Roasted Chicken and Swiss Sandwich
Roasted chicken and Swiss Cheese accented by Chipotle spread
Herbed Shrimp
Shrimp sauteed with Basil and Parsley served chilled with a lemon pastis vinaigrette, asparagus, couscous and cherry tomatoes
(I opted for the shrimp, feeling like somehow eating a sandwhich in First just wasn't worthy of the experience. The shrimp were fine.)
The Dessert Cart
Ice Cream Sundae
or
Fruit and Cheese
(I went for the Sundae)
You can kind of make out behind me in the picture that the seat behind me was broken, so they were one seat down in the section.
After lunch, I settled in to watch the rest of Juno. The sound was pretty bad, but I was able to get through most of it ok. I then took advantage of the lie flat feature of the Suite and got a couple hours of sleep.
The rest of the flight was uneventful. We had to wait about 30 minutes in MIA for a gate, which seems pretty typical for AA. The cabin crew for the entire flight was exemplary, and set the standard for the rest of the trip.
MIA-EZE follows in the next post
Apr 10, 2008, 12:59 am
#2
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: LAX
Programs: AA Plat, DL, NWA US, BA
Posts: 88
Mia-eze
During the layover in Miami, I took advantage of the AC, and grabbed a quick shower before the long overnight flight to Buenos Aires.
Boarding time came, and I found the seat that I had reserved for myself, seat 1J, with three windows!
The service aboard the MIA-EZE flight could not have been more different than the LAX-MIA flight. The FA's were curt, and hard to flag down. Since we had been offered the extra movie selection of tapes on the way to MIA, I knew they existed, so I asked the FA for them. Her first response was, "we don't have that, you just have the movies that play through the system." This didn't sound right, but I let it go as I had a mini DVD player with me, and in any case was in the middle of an amazing miniseries set in Buenos Aires, "Epitafios." If you have netflix, I can't recommend it enough!
Anyways, she came back a few minutes later with the list of movies, and apologized for not knowing they had them. I thought it was a little odd that a passenger who had only flown in a 777 once would know more than the FA, but whatever, I was happy to have it available, and chose to watch Into the Wild. Except that after all that the VCR didn't work anyway, so I watched Epitafios after all!
Dinner was then served, at a quite leisurely pace.
TO START
Warm mixed nuts
or
marinated cheese antipasto
SEAFOOD APPETIZER
Smoked salmon and herb marinated shrimp
(kinda icky)
CARROT CILANTRO SOUP
A creamy carrot and cilantro soup garnished with chopped cilantro, red onions, spicy jalapeno chiles and lime juice
(ok, but nothing special and too much raw onion for my taste)
Bread Basket
Assorted gourmet breads
MAIN COURSE
Lamb Medallions
Hoisin-Marinated Lamb Medallions
(I opted for this, it was pretty good)
Sesame Shrimp
Pan-seared shrimp with sesame seeds accompanied by a ginger soy glaze
Grilled Chicken
Rosemary-marinated breast of chicken
(I had this on the flight home and it was so inedible that I was not able to eat more than a couple of bites)
choice of
Salad
or
Vegetables
(I chose the vegetable and they were good.)
Dessert
choice of Ice Cream Sundae or Grand Marnier Fruit Salad presented with Lemon Sorbet
(I had the sundae again. On the way home I tried the fruit salad and it was actually really good)
I ended up sleeping through breakfast. It was so amazing to be able to sleep solidly on a plane- I had never had that experience before!
Had I risen in time, Breakfast would have been:
Croque Monsieur Breakfast Sandwich
Grilled Sandwich made with turkey ham, swiss cheese and bechamel sauce, topped with melted cheese and roasted tomatoes
yogurt
cereal
All in all, the Flagship Experience was memorable, and I am really glad that I used the extra miles. The comfort of the flat bed seat and the ability to arrive in Argentina with a nearly full night's sleep was amazing. I was able to function with almost no jet lag. The FA service was exceptional on the US portion of the flight, and pretty unremarkable on the International leg, which surprised me somewhat. The poor IFE was dissapointing, but I had been warned of that possibility, and certainly entertained myself with reading and my own dvd player. The food was of course mediocre. I wasn't expecting better, but it is still dissapointing, especially when looking at the amazing food seen in trip reports on this forum using non us carriers. I am blown away that we can't measure up in this regard.
To conclude, here are some pictures from the trip that I thought might be of interest to the forum readers:
THE CASA ROSADA
THE AIRPORT AT EL CALAFATE
Boarding time came, and I found the seat that I had reserved for myself, seat 1J, with three windows!
The service aboard the MIA-EZE flight could not have been more different than the LAX-MIA flight. The FA's were curt, and hard to flag down. Since we had been offered the extra movie selection of tapes on the way to MIA, I knew they existed, so I asked the FA for them. Her first response was, "we don't have that, you just have the movies that play through the system." This didn't sound right, but I let it go as I had a mini DVD player with me, and in any case was in the middle of an amazing miniseries set in Buenos Aires, "Epitafios." If you have netflix, I can't recommend it enough!
Anyways, she came back a few minutes later with the list of movies, and apologized for not knowing they had them. I thought it was a little odd that a passenger who had only flown in a 777 once would know more than the FA, but whatever, I was happy to have it available, and chose to watch Into the Wild. Except that after all that the VCR didn't work anyway, so I watched Epitafios after all!
Dinner was then served, at a quite leisurely pace.
TO START
Warm mixed nuts
or
marinated cheese antipasto
SEAFOOD APPETIZER
Smoked salmon and herb marinated shrimp
(kinda icky)
CARROT CILANTRO SOUP
A creamy carrot and cilantro soup garnished with chopped cilantro, red onions, spicy jalapeno chiles and lime juice
(ok, but nothing special and too much raw onion for my taste)
Bread Basket
Assorted gourmet breads
MAIN COURSE
Lamb Medallions
Hoisin-Marinated Lamb Medallions
(I opted for this, it was pretty good)
Sesame Shrimp
Pan-seared shrimp with sesame seeds accompanied by a ginger soy glaze
Grilled Chicken
Rosemary-marinated breast of chicken
(I had this on the flight home and it was so inedible that I was not able to eat more than a couple of bites)
choice of
Salad
or
Vegetables
(I chose the vegetable and they were good.)
Dessert
choice of Ice Cream Sundae or Grand Marnier Fruit Salad presented with Lemon Sorbet
(I had the sundae again. On the way home I tried the fruit salad and it was actually really good)
I ended up sleeping through breakfast. It was so amazing to be able to sleep solidly on a plane- I had never had that experience before!
Had I risen in time, Breakfast would have been:
Croque Monsieur Breakfast Sandwich
Grilled Sandwich made with turkey ham, swiss cheese and bechamel sauce, topped with melted cheese and roasted tomatoes
yogurt
cereal
All in all, the Flagship Experience was memorable, and I am really glad that I used the extra miles. The comfort of the flat bed seat and the ability to arrive in Argentina with a nearly full night's sleep was amazing. I was able to function with almost no jet lag. The FA service was exceptional on the US portion of the flight, and pretty unremarkable on the International leg, which surprised me somewhat. The poor IFE was dissapointing, but I had been warned of that possibility, and certainly entertained myself with reading and my own dvd player. The food was of course mediocre. I wasn't expecting better, but it is still dissapointing, especially when looking at the amazing food seen in trip reports on this forum using non us carriers. I am blown away that we can't measure up in this regard.
To conclude, here are some pictures from the trip that I thought might be of interest to the forum readers:
THE CASA ROSADA
THE AIRPORT AT EL CALAFATE
Apr 10, 2008, 3:19 am
#4
Join Date: Aug 2001
Location: Southern California/Los Angeles
Programs: Various
Posts: 2,778
Thanks for sharing the trip report LAXGR. How long did you stay in BA? I've often wondered what the difference is between J and F on the T7 LAX-MIA. Your report confirms that:
1. The seat/suite is the major difference. More space, windows, comfort, etc.
2. For meals J and F both have the same starter, entree choice, and dessert. F gets a soup and the salad is served from a cart and made to order, J does not.
3. F has the additional video player and (I presume) on the upgraded a/c it's not a video player, but completely updated AVOD system.
4. Kind of disappointing to hear the International MIA-EZE was lacking in comparison. If I take this trip I may consider going J instead.
Also:
It's quite possible (though I could be wrong) your FA was FT Member Proudbird who has mentioned that he sometimes works that flight. Look at his website for more info: The Skysteward
1. The seat/suite is the major difference. More space, windows, comfort, etc.
2. For meals J and F both have the same starter, entree choice, and dessert. F gets a soup and the salad is served from a cart and made to order, J does not.
3. F has the additional video player and (I presume) on the upgraded a/c it's not a video player, but completely updated AVOD system.
4. Kind of disappointing to hear the International MIA-EZE was lacking in comparison. If I take this trip I may consider going J instead.
Also:
The FA who seemed to be assigned to my section was one of the most outstanding I have ever encountered. Before we even took off, he had taken lunch orders and video orders for those who wanted to use the tape system. I chose Juno. As I started trying to figure out where to put the tape and how to work the controls, it must have been clear that it was my first time, and he was very sweet in helping me get it going.
Apr 10, 2008, 4:09 am
#5
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 805
I enjoyed your trip report LAXGR. Always happy to read about a great use of miles by those of us who travel more at the back of the bus than the front.
I hope to get to BA sooner than later, maybe when QF start their direct flight I'll cash in some miles.
Thanks again.
I hope to get to BA sooner than later, maybe when QF start their direct flight I'll cash in some miles.
Thanks again.
Apr 10, 2008, 7:37 am
#6
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: East Ester, Alaska
Programs: Alaska Million Miler, United Million Miler, Wyndham Rewards Diamond, Choice Hotels Diamond
Posts: 12,148
Excellent report, be it first time or tenth. Enjoy southern Argentina, one of the prettiest places in the world. Are you going all the way to Ushuaia?
^
Apr 10, 2008, 12:01 pm
#9
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: LAX
Programs: AA Plat, DL, NWA US, BA
Posts: 88
I did make it all the way to Ushuaia. If I had more time and money I would have headed to Antarctica from there! Oh well, next time. For those interested, my full itinerary included Iguazu Falls, Mendoza, El Calafate, El Chalten, Ushuaia, and then a week in BA. A lot of travel on Aerolinas, most of it uneventful and about equal in my experience to US carriers. They only lost my bag once!
Apr 10, 2008, 12:02 pm
#10
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: LAX
Programs: AA Plat, DL, NWA US, BA
Posts: 88
