Why doesn’t AA fly the 737-900

They have the A321 that fits roughly the same passenger count

True, but the a321 order was almost 2 decades after the 738.

until the 77W and a321 order, AA never seemed to operate the super stretch. No 739, 753, 764. Not sure why that was.

No 78X either

Moderator note:

I updated the thread title.

Per the FT rules,
https://www.flyertalk.com/help/rules#threadtitles

They had the 757 for that capacity during that time.

I would assume it's because it's more expensive to operate and their current demand for the percentage of 738s that they operate wouldn't support a higher yield that would improve PRASM (Passenger Revenue per Available Seat Mile) on the routes operated by 738s. If they need a narowbody aircraft for a higher yield, they can use an A321 which requires more fuel and also requires an extra flight attendant.

Keep in mind that AA was primarily an MD-80 fleet in the early 2000's, so the 737-800 was a 'big' plane. They also had 757s for the higher capacity routes. AA also went years without an narrow body aircraft order after the 737-800s of the late 90s since they inherited the TWA fleet.

When they did decide to make a narrowbody order to start replacing the MD80s and 757s, the wisely split the order between Airbus and Boeing, with the 319 being a partial md80 replacement and the 321 being the 757 replacement, along with more 737-800s to replace the MD80s and help growth.

I have flow the 737-900 on Delta and it is a miserable plane. I much prefer the extra room of the 321.

The US Airways side took delivery of the first A321 in January 2001 - pre 9/11
https://aviationweek.com/us-airways-...st-airbus-a321

First flight of the 737-900 (non-ER) was August 2000.
https://aviationweek.com/boeing-737-...s-first-flight

The biggest challenge of aircraft of that era was the lack of transcon range. Legacy AA was focused on fleet simplicity. It acquired TWA and then 9/11 happened and all the airlines were in survival mode with few order purchases. Legacy US airways needed Airbus financing.

The MD-80s on the legacy AA side didn't have transcon range. The 739 did not have transcon range, but the 738 did, and was a better fit from a size and role basis.

US used their A321s on short trunk routes - like LGA-CLT. The early A321s didn't have transcon range, but improvements and later versions certainly did. US used the A319 for transcons during this time.

When pre-merger AA made their pre-bankruptcy split order between Boeing and Airbus to replace the MD-80s - they decided on the 738 and an A321 split - with each aircraft being better suited for its mission. AA picked the 321 over the 739, but also picked the 738 over the a320.

Historically - in terms of why Continental and Delta ordered 739s - part of this was a legacy gentleman's agreement to only buy Boeing to get better pricing. The early 739s had limited range. Range improved with the 739ERs,
https://www.spokesman.com/stories/19...ine-considers/

At least as I remember from DFW local news sources, the "large" renewal order for narrow bodies was set to be all Airbus. Boeing got wind and managed to convince them a new order for the 737-whatever had better financials for the "middle" narrow-body capacity than a new order of A320's. So now the legacy al A320's are the orphan fleet rather than the legacy 737's.

But the other rumor that never went away in local business circles was that AA had really wanted the stretched 717.