E175 cabin reconfig
 

I had a bulkhead row seat (4C) on an E175 but then when I checked in online, my seat was reassigned to the back. Looking at the seat map, the new coach cabin layout started at row 8 instead of row 4. Turns out they assigned a new config E175 with 4 rows of F instead of 2.5, along with 20 MCE seats up front. I was able to grab one of them so no harm no foul.

Is there an wiki or any other guideline on the E175 reconfig progress? Having 12 F (instead of 8) and 20 MCE (instaed of none) is a huge improvement. That's basically 32 "good" seats on a 76 seat aircraft, which is a pretty nice ratio for an RJ.

At least here in NYC there are 2 configs of the E175 I have seen floating around.....one with 12F for more of the business markets and one with fewer FC seats.

Is it a reconfig, or are you just on an LAA E175 instead of the LUS version? If they are reconfiguring them and going to the LAA layout, great! (Though I believe the other way around wouldn't have been allowed anyway, due to scope clauses.)

It may be that a swap was done then. I was getting my hopes up that all the E175's would see this better config.

The flight was MCI-PHL. Up until the day before the flight, the seat layout had coach cabin starting at row 4 with no MCE. On day of flight upon checkin, the cabin layout changed to the one with 12F and 20MCE starting at row 8.

Looks like you were on Republic, which does have two configs: 8F with no MCE, and 12F with MCE. The 12F with MCE planes are typically the LAA ones, but according to the "unofficial" American Fleet site it looks like they are re-configuring the LUS ones to the LAA configuration. This would make sense, such as to standardize the entire E175 fleet and match the configuration Compass and Envoy have on their E175s.

That's the one I usually get from ORD MCI and formerly LGA BNA.

Exact same situation happened to me on a recent flight. MCE is nice, but the pitch in coach is pretty bad, I think 30".

Starting in January I believe all scheduled E175 flights are in the new config so this shouldn't be a problem.

Shame these aren't getting power outlets.

I’ve been on lots of Republic E175s on AA that have power outlets...just gotta look for them.

I think it's much more likely management would standardize the E175 on the LUS configuration since it has more seats.

Only if pilot scope clauses allow it. 76 seats (the LAA configuration) is the maximum allowed to be operated by regional affiliates in most US airline pilot contracts; LUS apparently allowed 80. I don't know how the LAA and LUS scope clauses were combined, but I'd be surprised if they're allowed to add regional planes with 80 seat configurations; if they were allowed to, I'd think LUS management would have moved the whole E175 fleet to 80 seats long ago.

As others have said, there are 2 E175 configs. I fly a lot of Republic and I often book flights that show the 8F config right up until either T-24 or T-4, when it is swapped with the 12F config (which explains why I wind up with such a good upgrade % as GLD-- as I often check in intending to select a MCE seat and see that I am actually confirmed into 4D!).