Feb 8, 2015, 6:20 am
Last edit by: Prospero
AA Transcontinental Three Class Service Airbus A321 "A321T"
NOTE: The "32B" designation is used by ICAO for A321 (-100 and -200) family with "Sharklet" wingtips; the use of "32B" by AA has been applied to "321T", the three class aircraft described here and used on transcon service, and for the "A321", the two class A321S used in "normal" service as well as the A321H ETOPS version used on West Coast-Hawai'i service. ("321" is used by AA to describe non-Sharklets equipped LUS A321s.)
A subset of A321-200 aircraft has a three class configuration (with First and Business with horizontal full flat seats, as well as Main Cabin Extra and Main Cabin) for use on transcontinental JFK-LAX and JFK-SFO flights. First delivery was N101NN, Fleet No. 783, 21 Nov 2013. Inaugural flights were AA118 Lv LAX 0700 Ar JFK 1530 Tue 7 Jan 2014 and AA133 Lv JFK 1545 Ar LAX 1925. SFO-LAX began 6 Mar 2014.
These aircraft, referred to as "A321T" or "321T", have 10F in 1 + 1 layout, 20J in 2 + 2, and 72Y in 3 + 3 configuration (MCE rows 11-16); coded "321T" (32B in timetables). F has Zodiac Skylounge solo suite seats with shells similar to the 77W Business suites, J have B/E Aerospace Diamond Parallel horizontal lie flat seats; MCE and Main Cabin Recaro slimline seats. Pets have two small cabins flanking the aisle forward in F, called "Cuddle Class".
In Flight Entertainment is Audio-Video on Demand (AVOD), provided by Thales in its TopSeries system, with 15.4" touch screens offering "200 movies, 180 TV programs, more than 350 audio selections, up to 20 games, and 3-D moving maps" free in F and J, and $4.00 for most movies and TV in Y on an 8.9" touch screen. These are also controlled by universal remote controls. Bose QuietComfort headsets are provided in F and J; these are recovered by crew about an hour from your destination. (Unfortunately, the IFE system has turned out to be extremely unreliable; currently, do not expect to experience seamless AVOD on these aircraft. Some have reported successfully resetting by holding down "O" button over ten seconds on remote and the same procedure for the screen power on button.)
WiFi is provided by GoGo ATG-4 (cellular) service, and is not very fast.
At seat power includes USB 5 VDC and universal 110 VAC outlets. The outlets are awkwardly placed by your head in J, in the seatback in front of you in coach.
Also note: Airbus A320 family - 156 inches (395 cm) outside width
Boeing 737 /757 - 148 inches (380 cm) outside diameter.
Which transcontinental AA flights are operated by A321-200 "A321T" three class aircraft?
All transcontinental non-stop flights scheduled• JFK <-> LAX
• JFK<-> SFOare operated by three class Airbus A321-200 "32B" (A321-200 with "Sharklets" wingtip devices.
No other regularly scheduled transcontinental non-stop flights (e.g. MIA-LAX, PHL-LAX or -SFO, etc.) use the three class A321-200 "A321T" - even if a "32B" might be used in the future, it will merely be a two class LAA A321-200 aircraft (with Sharklets).
For further discussion on seats, service, etc. on three class A321T aircraft, please see:
Best Business / First seat on LAA transcon Airbus A321 / A321T / "32B" (consolidated)
Best Economy / MCE seat on LAA transcon Airbus A321 / A321T / "32B" (consolidated)
For older posts, see the Archive thread here.
NOTE: The "32B" designation is used by ICAO for A321 (-100 and -200) family with "Sharklet" wingtips; the use of "32B" by AA has been applied to "321T", the three class aircraft described here and used on transcon service, and for the "A321", the two class A321S used in "normal" service as well as the A321H ETOPS version used on West Coast-Hawai'i service. ("321" is used by AA to describe non-Sharklets equipped LUS A321s.)
A subset of A321-200 aircraft has a three class configuration (with First and Business with horizontal full flat seats, as well as Main Cabin Extra and Main Cabin) for use on transcontinental JFK-LAX and JFK-SFO flights. First delivery was N101NN, Fleet No. 783, 21 Nov 2013. Inaugural flights were AA118 Lv LAX 0700 Ar JFK 1530 Tue 7 Jan 2014 and AA133 Lv JFK 1545 Ar LAX 1925. SFO-LAX began 6 Mar 2014.
These aircraft, referred to as "A321T" or "321T", have 10F in 1 + 1 layout, 20J in 2 + 2, and 72Y in 3 + 3 configuration (MCE rows 11-16); coded "321T" (32B in timetables). F has Zodiac Skylounge solo suite seats with shells similar to the 77W Business suites, J have B/E Aerospace Diamond Parallel horizontal lie flat seats; MCE and Main Cabin Recaro slimline seats. Pets have two small cabins flanking the aisle forward in F, called "Cuddle Class".
In Flight Entertainment is Audio-Video on Demand (AVOD), provided by Thales in its TopSeries system, with 15.4" touch screens offering "200 movies, 180 TV programs, more than 350 audio selections, up to 20 games, and 3-D moving maps" free in F and J, and $4.00 for most movies and TV in Y on an 8.9" touch screen. These are also controlled by universal remote controls. Bose QuietComfort headsets are provided in F and J; these are recovered by crew about an hour from your destination. (Unfortunately, the IFE system has turned out to be extremely unreliable; currently, do not expect to experience seamless AVOD on these aircraft. Some have reported successfully resetting by holding down "O" button over ten seconds on remote and the same procedure for the screen power on button.)
WiFi is provided by GoGo ATG-4 (cellular) service, and is not very fast.
At seat power includes USB 5 VDC and universal 110 VAC outlets. The outlets are awkwardly placed by your head in J, in the seatback in front of you in coach.
Also note: Airbus A320 family - 156 inches (395 cm) outside width
Boeing 737 /757 - 148 inches (380 cm) outside diameter.
Which transcontinental AA flights are operated by A321-200 "A321T" three class aircraft?
All transcontinental non-stop flights scheduled• JFK <-> LAX
• JFK<-> SFOare operated by three class Airbus A321-200 "32B" (A321-200 with "Sharklets" wingtip devices.
No other regularly scheduled transcontinental non-stop flights (e.g. MIA-LAX, PHL-LAX or -SFO, etc.) use the three class A321-200 "A321T" - even if a "32B" might be used in the future, it will merely be a two class LAA A321-200 aircraft (with Sharklets).
For further discussion on seats, service, etc. on three class A321T aircraft, please see:
Best Business / First seat on LAA transcon Airbus A321 / A321T / "32B" (consolidated)
Best Economy / MCE seat on LAA transcon Airbus A321 / A321T / "32B" (consolidated)
For older posts, see the Archive thread here.
Airbus A321 Transcon / A321T / "32B" 3 class (master thread)
Jan 17, 2024, 12:40 pm
#241
Join Date: Oct 2005
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What I will miss is the exceptionally low density of these planes-- quick boarding and deplaning, and rarely any need to gate check carry ons. Presumably some JFK-LAX rotations will end up seeing widebodies (like UA out of EWR), which in itself isn't a bad thing, but there was always something special about the intimate feel of the A321T, even in Y.
I also fully expect for BOS-LAX to revert to standard domestic F equipment once the A321T fleet is reconfigured.
I also fully expect for BOS-LAX to revert to standard domestic F equipment once the A321T fleet is reconfigured.
that said, given how terrible the fleet has become (the number of inop screens or plugs is ridiculous)...the new fleet cannot come soon enough!
Jan 17, 2024, 12:47 pm
#242
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2) Boarding from the front, it felt like a high end plane - two seats per row in 1, four seats in J. Passengers going to Y would always comment on how nice the plane was
3) Service was great - again in all cabins. F passengers got champagne, extra courses. J got a pretty good meal - even my J flight late last year felt better than what DL/UA currently offer in J in terms of multi course options.
4) You would regularly see celebrities in F given the LA contracts and such
The plane was from an era when AA was trying to be premium and set it self a step above the competition on an important route, and doing something different. Most of this is gone now. Now, little differentiates this plane from some of the planes JetBlue flies transcon...
Jan 17, 2024, 1:06 pm
#243
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What I will miss is the exceptionally low density of these planes-- quick boarding and deplaning, and rarely any need to gate check carry ons. Presumably some JFK-LAX rotations will end up seeing widebodies (like UA out of EWR), which in itself isn't a bad thing, but there was always something special about the intimate feel of the A321T, even in Y.
I also fully expect for BOS-LAX to revert to standard domestic F equipment once the A321T fleet is reconfigured.
I also fully expect for BOS-LAX to revert to standard domestic F equipment once the A321T fleet is reconfigured.
Also, the new 321s that will be assigned to JFK LAX/SFO will feature suites in business, premium economy and regular economy so they still won't have a high density configuration.
Jan 17, 2024, 1:16 pm
#244
Join Date: Jun 1999
Location: NYC/LA
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Posts: 7,487
https://news.aa.com/news/news-detail...9/default.aspx
Jan 17, 2024, 1:56 pm
#245
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It has already been speculated that AA will be leaving open the option of rotating widebodies between JFK and LAX in the future, similar to what we see on MIA-LAX. If you look at the original press release from AA, they do not actually commit to only putting the A321XLRs on this route, rather they commit to having lie flats.
https://news.aa.com/news/news-detail...9/default.aspx
https://news.aa.com/news/news-detail...9/default.aspx
Jan 17, 2024, 2:08 pm
#247
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: NYC
Programs: AA, Marriott
Posts: 210
Yeah, literally half the Y cabin was comfortable MCE, which elites could slide into easily. And it reliably had IFE in every seat, which shouldn't be a big deal, but is on AA. I hope the A321XLR and widebodies don't require an "upgrade" to get IFE and space. Premium Economy in A321XLR looks nice, but I'm guessing it'll be less accessible.
Jan 17, 2024, 2:09 pm
#248
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Jan 17, 2024, 2:21 pm
#249
Join Date: Jun 1999
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Morning LHR to JFK >> mid to late afternoon JFK-LAX >> last LAX-LHR departure of the night. This keeps it flying the whole day.
As a similar example, the plane for tonight's late LAX-LHR is running MAD-MIA and then MIA-LAX.
In the past, rather than have the 777s sit at JFK all afternoon waiting for the evening European banks to leave, some would cycle down to MIA, though I haven't seen that as much as of late.
Last edited by dw; Jan 17, 2024 at 2:31 pm
Jan 17, 2024, 2:28 pm
#250
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: NYC
Programs: AA, Marriott
Posts: 210
Though another feature I loved about the A321T over a widebody was more frequencies. After a late meeting got canceled, you could SDFC, head to the airport, and catch an earlier flight, getting home a few hours early. Presumably these routes are for business travelers right?
Jan 17, 2024, 6:29 pm
#251
Join Date: Aug 2007
Posts: 517
1) They felt like a special plane for a special route, especially when new. As many pointed out, the passenger count was small, and flights were comfortable in all cabins
2) Boarding from the front, it felt like a high end plane - two seats per row in 1, four seats in J. Passengers going to Y would always comment on how nice the plane was
3) Service was great - again in all cabins. F passengers got champagne, extra courses. J got a pretty good meal - even my J flight late last year felt better than what DL/UA currently offer in J in terms of multi course options.
4) You would regularly see celebrities in F given the LA contracts and such
The plane was from an era when AA was trying to be premium and set it self a step above the competition on an important route, and doing something different. Most of this is gone now. Now, little differentiates this plane from some of the planes JetBlue flies transcon...
2) Boarding from the front, it felt like a high end plane - two seats per row in 1, four seats in J. Passengers going to Y would always comment on how nice the plane was
3) Service was great - again in all cabins. F passengers got champagne, extra courses. J got a pretty good meal - even my J flight late last year felt better than what DL/UA currently offer in J in terms of multi course options.
4) You would regularly see celebrities in F given the LA contracts and such
The plane was from an era when AA was trying to be premium and set it self a step above the competition on an important route, and doing something different. Most of this is gone now. Now, little differentiates this plane from some of the planes JetBlue flies transcon...
Jan 17, 2024, 10:05 pm
#252
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To me, the 321T and the 77W represent the first time that AA tried in decades. Unfortunately, it was also the last time they tried.
Everything before and after has been the mickey mouse club of Carty, Arpey, Parker and Isom. Proof that corporate America isn't always the meritocracy claimed.
Everything before and after has been the mickey mouse club of Carty, Arpey, Parker and Isom. Proof that corporate America isn't always the meritocracy claimed.
Jan 17, 2024, 10:30 pm
#253
Join Date: Mar 2010
Programs: AA, UA, Marriott
Posts: 1,112
Has anyone determined where the frequency is being pulled from? BOS? The frequencies there look pretty sad these days, 1-2x/day to LAX.
Or JFK-SFO?
I'd be surprised if it's JFK-LAX or if JFK-SNA is removed. JFK-LAX is the only one that seems to work. I don't blame that on the 321T but on AA itself. The entire transcon operation feels like a shell of its former self.
Or JFK-SFO?
I'd be surprised if it's JFK-LAX or if JFK-SNA is removed. JFK-LAX is the only one that seems to work. I don't blame that on the 321T but on AA itself. The entire transcon operation feels like a shell of its former self.
Jan 18, 2024, 2:01 am
#254
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Before AA acquired the A321Ts, LAX-JFK was served exclusively by three-class 767-200s.
Jan 18, 2024, 6:52 am
#255
Join Date: Jun 1999
Location: NYC/LA
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There must be a lot of slack in the fleet right now so I don’t think it will impact any frequencies. BOS-LAX was 4 or 5 frequencies a day last year, and now it’s down to 2 most days (possibly 3 this spring if the schedule holds).