Originally Posted by
ISTFlyer
If AA subs a normal A321 rather than a wide-body just for more Economy seats, they would lose premium cabin customers to other airlines ( Delta, JetBlue & United ) which offer lie-flat seats on this route.
Alaska is the only carrier that offers recliner seats on the NYC-LAX/SFO direct market and I'm sure that American doesn't want to join Alaska.
During pre-COVID, an average JFK-LAX ticket booked 15-30 days in advance at a reasonable hour was about $259-299 in Y and $899-1299 in J. Now, it's possible to find $89-129 fares in Y and $499-699 in J, plus New York hotels are significantly cheaper than the past which currently attracts tourists with a lower budget which could not afford a NY holiday in regular days.
I don't disagree with anything here. But I think the exact mix of premium vs non-premium customers and exact numbers makes a difference for which would be the correct approach - this started off with very depressed business numbers so to support a widebody there would need to be massive economy numbers. If there are then that's great. I don't run an airline, so I trust that AA know what they are doing (well, more or less!)
rb211.