TropicalTripper

Hopefully it's not too presumptuous of me to start this thread, but I noticed a lack of information on AR's seating on FT and their seat maps don't show up on SeatGuru and SeatExpert. I lived in Buenos Aires for nearly two years, having recently departed. During that time I took 21 flights on AR and Austral, which is wholly owned by AR. I flew on every type of aircraft in the two airlines' active fleets. I realize there are other people on this thread who are very familiar with traveling in Argentina and probably have a fair amount of experience on AR, since there is really only one other viable option (LAN) for most domestic destinations. Everything I am posting here is from observation, so if I have any details wrong I welcome corrections and additional information.

Also, for those who don't know, AR calls their first class Club Economy on domestic routes. On 737s the seats are comparable to a domestic FC seat in the U.S. and similarly, the ERJ-190 seats are pretty much identical to first class RJ seats in the U.S. AR does use the A340s domestically sometimes and the seats are bigger (more on that later)

How AR Handles Seat Assignments

For certain fare classes, AR allows seat selection at the time of booking. For all others, you must wait for the online check-in window, which opens 36 hours before departure, not 24 hours like many other carriers. For domestic flights Promo and Económica fares in L, M & K classes do not allow advance seat selection. Since their booking site doesn't show class of service during booking, you basically have to go all the way through the booking process to determine if you can select a seat or not.

For domestic flights, non-residents of Argentina are, to my knowledge, ineligible for Promo and Económica fares and are forced to buy up to the Flexible or Club Economy fares. A word to the wise, often Club Economy fares are similar to Flexible fares and sometimes they’re even less. So unless you can get the Argentine rate, it might be a better value for you to buy into the premium cabin. Also, you will likely get more RDMs and MQMs on whatever SkyTeam program you’re with.

Don't worry if you can't pre-select your seats though because it seems like Argentines aren't big users of web check-in. Looking at the seat maps well after online check-in has been open usually shows a lot of availability.

It isn't possible to get bulkhead (except Club Economy/Condor) or exit row seats in advance or during OLCI. These must be assigned by an agent. I gather many people don't ask for exit rows specifically, because I was frequently able to change to an exit row by asking the agent. For advance seat assignments AR doesn't seem to hold back a lot of inventory, usually only the last few rows of the plane. No seats are set aside for AR or SkyTeam elites.

One more note about check-in. If you do OLCI, I highly recommend printing out your BPs in advance, especially if you have no baggage to check. AR doesn't have a lot of kiosks at EZE or AEP and many outstations don't even have kiosks. When kiosks are available, they often don't work and print a paper telling you to go to an agent.

Be aware that if you are SkyTeam Elite or Elite Plus your BP will print with a 'PRIORITY' even though ST elites in theory aren't supposed to receive any expedited handling. The BP also indicates Elite or Elite Plus. AR rolled out SkyPriority at a couple airports, but agents don't seem to understand that ST elites aren't supposed to receive this service. I routinely pre-boarded and used elite check-in lanes when I was a DL Silver. They also tagged my bags with priority tags, which usually doesn't help on AR.

737-700

Note that there are at least two different 73G configurations out there and differences are minor between these two. There may be some other configs I haven't witnessed.

Economy:

Row 3: is bulkhead. These seats have cutouts. Like usual, tray tables are in the armrests reducing seat width

Row 6: on both sides are missing a window

Row 10: These are exit row seats and they're great. Unlike some carriers the window seat in row 9 is not removed. AR doesn't allow any bags under seat in overwing exit rows so everything must go in the overhead.

Row 22: Last row with limited recline and close to lavs

Club Economy/Club Condor:

I've never flown up front on the 73G, but I size the seats up when boarding. Row 1 on all of the 73Gs have walls in front of them with no cutouts. On one 73G (I believe LV-GOO), I observed a huge amount of legroom for 1D/F. It was like there was supposed to be a closet in front, but it was missing. This is the only 'out of the ordinary' 73G I've seen in the fleet, which leads me to believe that there could be some other inconsistencies, since much of their 73G fleet is secondhand, from a range of different carriers. I believe they have some factory-delivered 73Gs in the fleet with the Sky Interior, although I've never flown on one.

IFE: Your inflight magazine, which contains a fair amount of government propaganda.

737-800

Economy:

Row 3: Aisle seats C and D are excellent because the wall partition doesn't go all of the way out, meaning you can fully outstretch whatever leg is closest to the aisle.

Row 9: The left side is missing a window, the right is not.

Row 10: Both left and right are missing windows

Rows 13 & 14: Exit rows. 13 doesn't recline. AR requires that all luggage go in the overhead for overwing exit passengers.

I don't recall which row number is the last, but recline is limited and these seats are near the bathroom.

Club Economy/Condor:

I flew 1F from AEP-FTE and it was pretty tight in the bulkhead seat. If I were riding up front again I would choose row 2.

At least one aircraft, LV-CXS, has the Sky Interior.

IFE: Your inflight magazine. Even the A/C with the Sky Interior doesn't have IFE, and it's used on flights as far away as CCS and LIM.

ERJ-190 (Austral)

Economy:

Row 4. These are bulkhead seats and have cutouts so the legroom is generous. 4B is exceptionally comfortable because there is only one seat in Club Economy on aircraft left so you can fully extend both legs, but you might be more prone to getting bumped by the cart.

Exit Row: It looks like I didn't write down what row the exit is, but suffice to say that the overwing exit row seats have good legroom, but not as good as 4B. All carry-ons must be stowed in the overhead though.

Last row: Typical limited recline

IFE: Perhaps the best IFE of the fleet. Every seat has a seatback TV and a limited amount of on-demand programming. Due to the short range of the flights, no movies are offered, but they have an okay selection of TV shows, including some western programs. You can choose your language when the system boots up.

Club Economy/Condor:

There are two solo left-side A seats in rows 2 and 3. Rows 1-3 on the right are 2 seat pairs. I have been in the window of row 1 before and bulkhead legroom is more generous than on the 737s.

A340-300

Economy:

Row 14: The outside seats are behind the L2/3 doors, but there is a wall, making these bulkhead seats. Legroom is generous, but these seats often go to families since they have bassinet mounting brackets.

Row 18: There are no windows in this row.

Row 31: The outside pairs of seats are exit row and have a lot of legroom, although people may congregate here when waiting for the lav. There is a small protrusion from the slide packs in the window (31A/H) positions.

Row 46: Last row with limited recline

Club Condor:

Not having experienced these seats I can't say much, however, I should note that there are at least two radically different seat models out there and you won't know what you are going to get until you are onboard. LV-BMT, for instance, has the old-school business class seats that are more akin to a Lazy Boy while LV-CSF has a shell type seat. I can't confirm whether it is full 180 degrees or angled lie-flat, but someone else may be able to chime in here. Rumor has it that AR will be getting rid of the older 343s, replacing with newer, albeit still used, airframes. I haven't heard this from official sources though.

IFE: LV-CSF had some sort of seatback entertainment system, but it wasn't on for my BOG-EZE flight and I don't know if it works. Movies were shown on an overhead screen. LV-BMT only had front/overhead screens.

A340-200

I flew two different 342s pretty early on in Argentina from EZE-USH-EZE and I wasn't really paying attention to the details, so maybe someone else can add more.

Economy:

While I can't say the row numbers, the guidance on the 343s about the front bulkheads and the exit row seats behind the wing holds true.

Club Economy/Condor:

On the two A/C I flew (LV-ZPO & LV-ZPJ), they both had the old recliner type seats up front. The longest domestic flight you will see an A340 on is EZE-USH, which clocks in over 3 hours. If you are on an A340, Club Economy may be worth the splurge. It's not priced any differently than Club Economy on the 737s for the same route. Generally you will only see the 340s on domestic routes during the summer, typically to USH and FTE.

IFE: Overhead screens

I will save my comments on AR catering for another post if there is interest. All I will say though is: vegetarians be warned. The crackers and alfajores that are served on every domestic flight contain lard. So usually all you’re left with is a juice box and a small chocolate. Bring your own snacks.

JMRL

Thanks a lot for sharing your experience. There's no much information on AR seating so your thread is very valuable for us.

Kaitlin

Thanks TropicalTripper for this very useful, informative post, especially since there is so little information out there!

LAX888

Thanks a lot for sharing as I am flying an AR flight from GIG-AEP next month. I will try and get the exit seats if they are not available.
Do you know how strict AR is with baggage which is slightly overweight? I am a bit astonished that they don't offer at least 23kg like many other carriers now do.
How about hand luggage? Are they strict on how heavy it can be or is it fine to bring a hand luggage which is 2-3kg above the 7kg limit?

Thanks for any input.

jefi99

Excellent information. I have flown AR a few times over the years, but have decided to avoid in the future, if possible. If not possible, I will look up this thread again!

Eastbay1K

Are you sure that you don't get a higher baggage allowance out of Brazil? (32kg instead of 23kg) You can expect strict enforcement of hand luggage out of Brazil.

LAX888

According to this link it is only 20kg.
http://www.aerolineas.com.ar/arg/main.asp?idSitio=NZ&idPagina=52&idIdioma=en

Thanks for the heads up on the hand luggage.

TropicalTripper

AR is pretty strict with carry-on weight, but if you can get past the ticket counter, you're good. If you can check-in with a kiosk, that's the way to go. I took several flights on AR over last May-July and none of the kiosks at AEP and EZE were working. When they are working, they don't allow you to choose exit or bulkhead seats. Most field stations do not have kiosks, but i have seen them in SCL and BOG. When I traveled with my wife we would be sneaky and check-in separately while the other stayed back with the carry-on bags. We could use the priority lines as Delta Elite Plus though. The regular check-in lines can be long and slow, especially during peak travel times and during IRROPS.

LAX888

Thanks for the update! I am not sure if GIG will have a kiosk but hope the queue at check-in won't be too long. We are only flying one way with them.
Will keep that in mind regarding the hand luggage if they are a bit on the heavy side.

SFTNYC

I recently flew AR's A330-200 and 737-700 (both in business class):

The A330-200 has 4 rows of 6 across fairly standard angle lie flat seats, built into shells. Not too different from the Aer Lingus ones but not as good as the Lufthansa ones. Pitch is 60". Decent storage but not great. I can usually make myself comfortable enough in an angled lie-flat by putting it into a recliner position rather than completely flat. The seat has lots of individual adjustability, and a surprisingly nice amenity kit was offered (among the nicest J class ones I've gotten). AVOD screen is maybe 14" but selection only included ~6 movies (all American) and maybe a dozen TV shows so not fantastic.

I was the only passenger in business class on the 737-700; the seats were very wide and well worn / comfortable enough but felt not well looked after. Mine wobbled a bit when upright; tried another seat and it was the same. Recline was much more than I'm used to in domestic F, and if I had to guess the pitch in row 2 was maybe 40"-42".

SJC ORD LDR

Just flew from FTE to AEP last night on a 738 that was 31 rows of Y with slimline seats. Is this a new configuration?

JMRL

Hi SFTNYC:
are all seats in 330´s J the same, or do you think a certain row is better than other? I am flying AR in two month and wanted to choose seat, but there is no info on the seating chart for this plane anywhere.
Thanks!

GRUflyer

I have flown 4 (!) versions of the A343 and the A332 once.

So the A343 are used frames previously operated by:

- Air France featuring NEV 2 seats
- Air Canada featuring Old recliner seats (very comfy though)
- Air Mauritius featuring lie-flat seats, same used by TK in the A343 or Air Europa.
- Cathay Pacific, featuring Recaro lie flats, and even an F Cabin of 8 seats.

The A332 I flew was ex-AF featuring NEV2 seats as well.

JMRL

Thanks for the relpy. Yes, AR A343 fleet is a mess!
AR has no ex-AF 332. Maybe they bought the AF seats for their planes?
What´s the difference between NEV2 and NEV3 seats?
Do you remeber the number of rows in J in the 332? I´ve been given row 6 and 7 seats for my flights, but from a seatmap I only see 5 rows. Will be calling to confirm this.

GRUflyer

So maybe you are right. The frame might not be ex AF but the seats are the same.

The difference between NEV2 and NEV3 is that the 3rd version has a foot rest at the end of the leg rest, while NEV2 places your feet in a cubby which I particularly find annoying.

On my flight there were indeed 30 J seats ( 5 rows in 2-2-2 configuration).