Transcon Flagship First vs. Flagship Business
 

Any real difference besides the seat and access to the Chelsea lounge in New York? Flying SFO to JFK and no Flagship Lounge in SF.

1-1 configuration versus 2-2 and a soup course.

It was never worth paying the difference, but even less so now with the removal of Flagship First Dining.

By no means a guarantee, I find the service to be much more attentive, but the catering nearly identical. I adore a 1-1 narrow body and it’s my favorite cabin in the fleet. Not worth the cash layout if it’s my dime, but a fun way to burn an expiring SWU.

Done both, worth the money to take the in-app UG IMHO.

I quite like the op-up on the return leg.

That is a sweet-spot for a much better overall experience for marginal extra cost. The delta flying WB is augmented by the ground experience. I’ll occasionally op-up if on the EB red eye but I tend to avoid such short overnighters when I can avoid it.

I have never paid but take the opup every time I am offered ;)

Well except the one time I was with a companion…the lucky person next to my companion got a F seat instead.

I use my BusinessExtra upgrades here when travelling on a revenue AA ticket.

I actually love the 1-1 seating in first.. And since I am a JFK based flyer, really find that because of my trans con frequency I am in first most of the time.. But when I travel in business class , as a CK , I get into the Chelsea Lounge which is excellent IMHO.. It is the extreme privacy in first that I cherish

Lots of trip report content out there (written and video) about transcon F and J...perhaps worth a quick review so you can see it for yourself if you're into that kind of thing. In SFO, the ground experience is the same for business and first. The lounge is the Admirals Club which is nice but isn't what you'll have at JFK. When I flew out of there last summer, check in was crazy busy and the ground staff was so-so....no special treatment at all...typical security and lines...fantastic onboard experience in business (one of the best FAs I've had in years). If you're with a partner, business might be better IF you want to sit next to them and chat because you won't really have that option in first. Either way, it's the best domestic premium cabin in the fleet.

I think transcon F is a really nice way to cross the country. I probably make 3-5 trips a year. Don't mean to be precious, but I've only done J a few times. I'd never pay serious extra money to be in F. But I've usually gotten a cash upgrade either in app or at the airport in the region of $250-350 (record low was like $240 on a 6am Sunday morning SFO-JFK) and I think that's well worth it for the extra privacy on longish flight. Somehow the crews on these flights tend to be more fun than the frostier ones on TATL F.

That will be nothing compared to when it learns to create its own email accounts and then use them for MFA on logins for other sites. I presume it already could do this if it was allowed to.

Is flagship First transcon dine on demand. I have a 6:30am and really would prefer to eat towards the end of the flight

theoretically yes you can always ask them to "save your meal for later" but how well it holds up is another question

I would avoid using the term "dining" in association with American's transcon breakfasts. Dining sets far too lofty of an expectation.