FAllWay

Going NYC to DFW and it's on the new 738.
According to SeatGuru and SeatExpert's websites, they have conflicting information on seats 3E and 3F.

SeatGuru states that those seats have less legrooms. However, SeatExpert states it's more legroom. Anyone know by experience which is correct? ^

jsmeeker

how can you tell if a 738 is "newer" or "older"? It's been a while since I was on an AA 738. Been seeing nothing but Mad Dogs and ERJs the past few years.

I have a trip booked for early February to go DFW-FLL. Would be nice to see the inside of the Sky Interior version.

FAllWay

Oh, maybe its not new. I was reading the descriptions on those sites and I thought it was newer.

But I would like to know which site is correct about thos legroom.

Psyclone*Jack

I think the coach bulkhead on the old model is row 7. New model it is row 8.

mvoight

And, the row 8 one seems to be missing on the 2 major seat sites.
My daughter was on one a couple of days ago, SNA-ORD. The pain was both sites indicated the row 7 configs. AA showed the flight correctly. She got 17c with the blocked middle seat. She was sick so had to change an award and only booked this 2 days before departure. Thanks to the good people at Flyertalk, it is good to know about row 16 and 17 on this plane.

FAllWay

I will be in seats 3e and 3f. Domestic first

Fitch7600

It depends how you look at it. There are more inches between row 3 and the bulkhead than, for example, row 4 and row 3. The main difference is that you lose the under seat space to stretch your legs. On the other hand, no one will be reclining on you. The smaller difference is that in version 2, rows 4-6 have a small drop down drink tray built into the seats in front of you. Row 3 doesn't have that.

I think most of the 738's are version 2 now. All the new ones are, and the older ones are being converted. There is a pretty big difference between the F seats. The old version are standard recliners. The new version are the articulating seats where it reclines a little and the seat slides forward a little. Also, in version 2, the outside armrest lifts up and there is storage space for a laptop or tablet, which is really handy. Finally, version 2 has the AC plugs, and version 1 uses the cigarette style adaptor.

Apieinthesky

3E/3F - bulkhead on the 738? I haven't been on the new version with the sky interior, but I think the bulkhead F seats on the old 738 do have less legroom. My favorite seats are 4E or 5E on the 738.

Edit: I think Fitch7600 is spot on. There's less legroom because there is no seat in front of the bulkhead for you to stretch your legs under.

But I don't agree that most of the 738s are version 2. I have yet to be on a 738 with the articulating seats, and I fly on these birds somewhat often, usually between LGA-ORD and BOS-ORD. But maybe that's just me.

aamilesslave

Really? I'm hardly ever on the old version. Perhaps the old version primarily flies from ORD (your flights) and the new version primarily flies from DFW (my flights)?

austin_res

Everyone's experience will vary. Since AA introduced the new version in 2009, almost all of my 738 flights have been on version 2 config.

will2288

I agree. Personally, I choose row 4 on an even numbered flight and row 6 on an odd flight. I generally don't choose bulkheads unless I know there is substantial room to stretch my legs. As most planes don't have that much room in the first row, I usually go for the second row (row 4 in this case).

OP: row 3 on a 738 is not a bad choice. I would say the legroom is about average for a domestic F bulkhead. Some no doubt prefer it, others do not. But it is not a terrible choice, unlike some bulkheads (I could be wrong, but I seem to remember seeing pictures of a UA 757 with terrible legroom in the first row of F).

jeffreyt

I am on the newest config - in 3A (mood lighting, articulating seats, bigger window, and the recessed lighting in the ceiling, all that stuff) and the bulkhead is in the same spot on both sides of the aisle. The seats begin at the exact same spots on both sides of the aisle, so there is no advantage to which side of the plane you are on.

JDiver

To be honest, neither seatexpert nor seatguru are extremely reliable. I'd say the latter particularly so, given it's purchase by Trip Advisor, who seem to have been unclear about the benefits (and maintenance requirements) of their purchase.

Microwave

The physical windows are the same size on all 737-800s.

ijgordon

That's not a distinguishing factor of old vs. new, AFAIK. The birds that have been reconfigured for Main Cabin Extra seating don't have a row 7, and also have the middle seats "hard-blocked" in the two rows behind the exit rows. Pretty sure this can be on either a "new" or "old" bird, although I guess it's possible that in conjunction with the MCE re-fits, they're updating the interiors with the Sky Interior's articulating seats, mood lighting, new bins, etc.

FWIW, the only bulkhead seats in AA domestic F that I feel comfortable booking are 3EF on the MD80 (and preferably F, because E is often right next to the lavatory door, depending on configuration).