It took a good 5-minute walk towards the satellite terminal where my boarding gate was. 30 minutes before scheduled departure time, the boarding was already at group 4, so looks like they started earlier than scheduled.

American Airlines – AA133 – October 10th 2017
New York JFK Terminal 8 – 17:00
Los Angeles LAX Terminal 5 – 20:21
Airbus A321 (321T) – N116AN – Business class, seat 06F, window.

Sorry for the lack of seat pictures, but I was quite tired and the cabin was full and I boarded last so not so many opportunites to take cabin pictures...
It was not my first time on board the transcon service, but I always flew in the economy plus section, in the third tier of the aircraft. This time, I was in business class. The main benefit off flying on the 321T is that you have flat bed seats in both the business and first class (this aircraft features 3-classes of service, and the first class seat is equivalent to the one used on their 777-300 business class). The cabin was already almost full when I boarded, including the overhead bins. The seat 6F I preselected is located at the first row of this cabin (bulkhead seat), and the only business class lavatory is located just across the aisle.

First class on AA Airbus 321 Transcon


Seat 6F – AA Airbus 321 Transcon business class

The cabin configuration being in 2-2, you will need to step over your neighbour if you are seated on a window seat and need to use the lavatory. A duvet and a pillow were located on the seat, and right behind the headrest were placed a Cole Haan amenity kit with a bottle of water. I was actually suprised to see an amenity kit to be there. It contained the usual stuff : Earplugs, moisturizer cream, tissues, socks, an eye mask and a dental kit.


Seat 6F – AA Airbus 321 Transcon legroom


Amenity kit and water bottle behind the seat

Paper menus were placed on the little cocktail table between the two seats and a non-alcoholic pre-departure beverage was served prior to take off, which occured after a 10 minute taxi time.




AA133 JFK-LAX Business class menu

About 20 minutes after take off, Bose noise-cancelling headsets were provided and the FA came to take the meal orders and offer a first bar service, which was served with warm nuts.


AA133 JFK-LAX First drink service

A choice of 3 main courses was offered that evening and choose the to order the sea bass. A tray served from the galley came 15 minutes later with the starters and the salad. Honestly i was not that hungry, and the appetizer, some hummus and the salad were quite big and a bit on the heavy side for the hummus, but still quite tasty (including the salad – for which a choice of two dressings was offered. The sea bass was excellent and cooked just right. I however passed on the dessert, so I cannot comment on it.



AA133 JFK-LAX Dinner service – Sea bass

It was time for me to get some sleep and test the lie flat position of the seat. Clearly this is not the long haul business class used in first class on this same plane, and the length of it is similar to what is used on the BA babybus, so I could not extend my legs fully. I still managed to get a good hour of sleep.


AA Airbus 321 transcon business class flat bed mode

The service was alright at start (no name addressing) but later on during the flight, the crew seemed to have disappeared in the galley, with even one flight attendant sleep below blankets on the floor near door 2L ! (not sure if this FA was travelling as a passenger or as an acting cabin crew).
A basket of snacks and fruits were placed during the flight on the bulkhead panel of row 6.
A last round of drinks was offered shortly before landing – but no sign of the cookies mentioned in the menu (I was not really hungry though)


AA133 JFK-LAX Snacks basket

The seat, when not positioned as a bed, was quite confortable, but I missed a compartment to place the laptop. A couple USB ports and a power socket were available. The IFE was the new AA system with a decent selection of video and audio programs, but I mostly used the moving map feature and some music compilations they offered. A little remote control, with a touch screen, was located under the armrest, which is convenient as you cannot really access the touch screen with the seat belt fastened. However, this remote controller started to act crazy as soon as I touched, with programs randomly changing, the volume going up and down… So I eventually managed to deactivate it for the rest of the flight. WiFi was available troughout the flight.


AA Airbus 321 Transcon IFE remote


WiFi prices (for a laptop)

As a wrote before, the only business class lavatory is located right across the aisle from this seat. While choosing seat 6F has some benefits (like the limited need to jump over your neighbour when going out of your seat or the extra storage space in front of the seat, the main disavantage is the proximity of the lavatory, especially on night flights as the bathroom light is pretty intense and shines just in front of you.


Approaching LAX

We landed in LAX a good 20 minutes ahead of schedule and had to wait a couple minutes to get our gate in terminal 5.

Cabin Crew : C
Seat : B+. Seat is nice and has the benefit to be able to go in full flat on a domestic flight.
On time performance : A
Meal and beverages : B. Special mention for the main course.
Overall experience : B