Flew on a brand new American 787-900

[dishdude]

I had the pleasure to ride on a brand new plane this afternoon, this was only the second flight it has operated with passengers. Nothing too crazy to report, the interior was very nice and having everything brand new was a treat. Apparently this is a new cabin AA is rolling out with a lot more business and premium economy seats than before. The "suite" is a nice evolution of their current business class seat that I really like, some improvements including a sliding door that closes to give you some privacy from the aisle, 4K screens, wireless charging, Bluetooth connectivity for your personal headsets, a chaise seating position in addition to the existing lie flat bed mode were added as well. A lot of well thought out storage places, even the wireless charging spot is designed so you can watch content on it while it charges.

Since this was a domestic flight (LAX>ORD) lunch was the typical domestic offering on AA. Flight was only 3 hours but a 16+ hour trip in this seat would have been very comfortable and enjoyable.

 

[Dborch41]

A few years ago my wife and I flew on a 787 from Beijing to Dallas. We were in coach, but fortunately the flight wasn't very full and we had the three seats to ourselves which made a world of difference. We were part of a group of six and we had what almost seemed like our very own flight attendant. He was really cool and since we're all the polite type he took good care of us, including free wine for the whole group.
The aircraft itself was a treat. Incredibly smooth and quiet, plus they're able to maintain a lower cabin altitude (higher pressurization), which is noticeably more comfortable. Longest flight of my life but not bad at all.

 

[Snagglefoot]

I just flew on a 787 configured as the cattle car version with 3-3-3 seating and no fancy pants first class or business class seats. The bathroom cluster half-way down the plane was handy and line ups were minimal. Also there was an open area near the cluster so one or two people didn’t have to stand adjacent to a seated customer while waiting.

I was flying Dublin to Calgary and we flew over Iceland, Greenland and Hudson Bay.

As was mentioned in other threads, the plane was very quiet.

 

[AKhan87]

I am not sensitive to sounds but I would like to understand, which airline (airplane) that you guys have flown that were noisy? I have NEVER experienced a noisy airplane...

before the age of 12, as a family, we would fly internationally 3-4 times a year, granted there was a big gap in flying from 1999-2013, I just haven't came across noisy airplanes.

 

[Bailes1992]

I am not sensitive to sounds but I would like to understand, which airline (airplane) that you guys have flown that were noisy? I have NEVER experienced a noisy airplane...

before the age of 12, as a family, we would fly internationally 3-4 times a year, granted there was a big gap in flying from 1999-2013, I just haven't came across noisy airplanes.

737-800 is LOUD. I've been on 4 in the last month and I really wouldn't like to spend more than a few hours on one.

 

[4WD]

I had the pleasure to ride on a brand new plane this afternoon, this was only the second flight it has operated with passengers. Nothing too crazy to report, the interior was very nice and having everything brand new was a treat. Apparently this is a new cabin AA is rolling out with a lot more business and premium economy seats than before. The "suite" is a nice evolution of their current business class seat that I really like, some improvements including a sliding door that closes to give you some privacy from the aisle, 4K screens, wireless charging, Bluetooth connectivity for your personal headsets, a chaise seating position in addition to the existing lie flat bed mode were added as well. A lot of well thought out storage places, even the wireless charging spot is designed so you can watch content on it while it charges.

Since this was a domestic flight (LAX>ORD) lunch was the typical domestic offering on AA. Flight was only 3 hours but a 16+ hour trip in this seat would have been very comfortable and enjoyable.

I was looking forward to another AA transatlantic 1-2-1 and had nailed a single at the bulkhead - last minute change and now in BA’s awful business class …
At least I have one Polaris booking before that …

 

[GON]

I had the pleasure to ride on a brand new plane this afternoon, this was only the second flight it has operated with passengers. Nothing too crazy to report, the interior was very nice and having everything brand new was a treat. Apparently this is a new cabin AA is rolling out with a lot more business and premium economy seats than before. The "suite" is a nice evolution of their current business class seat that I really like, some improvements including a sliding door that closes to give you some privacy from the aisle, 4K screens, wireless charging, Bluetooth connectivity for your personal headsets, a chaise seating position in addition to the existing lie flat bed mode were added as well. A lot of well thought out storage places, even the wireless charging spot is designed so you can watch content on it while it charges.

Since this was a domestic flight (LAX>ORD) lunch was the typical domestic offering on AA. Flight was only 3 hours but a 16+ hour trip in this seat would have been very comfortable and enjoyable.

Thanks for sharing pictures of the new flagship business cabin! Looks awesome.

Was the ice maker broken?

 

[Danno]

I am not sensitive to sounds but I would like to understand, which airline (airplane) that you guys have flown that were noisy? I have NEVER experienced a noisy airplane...

before the age of 12, as a family, we would fly internationally 3-4 times a year, granted there was a big gap in flying from 1999-2013, I just haven't came across noisy airplanes.

Dash 8 -200, 300 a noisy turboprop regional. Flew in them many times, glad the flights were only an hour.

 

[Kira]

In the second picture, it looks like there's an old fashioned filament light bulb in that reading lamp.

 

[JavierH19]

In the second picture, it looks like there's an old fashioned filament light bulb in that reading lamp.

That nice warm light does look incandescent but it's likely led.

 

[BISCUT]

I had the pleasure to ride on a brand new plane this afternoon, this was only the second flight it has operated with passengers. Nothing too crazy to report, the interior was very nice and having everything brand new was a treat. Apparently this is a new cabin AA is rolling out with a lot more business and premium economy seats than before. The "suite" is a nice evolution of their current business class seat that I really like, some improvements including a sliding door that closes to give you some privacy from the aisle, 4K screens, wireless charging, Bluetooth connectivity for your personal headsets, a chaise seating position in addition to the existing lie flat bed mode were added as well. A lot of well thought out storage places, even the wireless charging spot is designed so you can watch content on it while it charges.

Since this was a domestic flight (LAX>ORD) lunch was the typical domestic offering on AA. Flight was only 3 hours but a 16+ hour trip in this seat would have been very comfortable and enjoyable.

I could have used this seat on a recent ITA flight to Rome! Looks comfy!

 

[crashz]

Thanks for sharing pictures of the new flagship business cabin! Looks awesome.

Was the ice maker broken?

That's a seasoned traveler there. Ice machines on airplanes (probably not new ones) can be pretty dirty as they are seldom cleaned. They say not to drink anything that has touched the internal water tanks (coffee, tea, etc).

I too go for the pre-packaged drinks when traveling and usually don't have any issues.

And OP, thanks for the post! Nice to see the 787 cabin.

 

[Capt W]

Flew from Philly (to DFW) on an AA 787-9 (not -900, BTW) a few weeks ago. Used miles to upgrade into premium economy for extra legroom. Was our first 787 ride; very impressed with the smoothness. And watching the flex on those CFRP wings is incredible!

 

[Astro14]

That's a seasoned traveler there. Ice machines on airplanes (probably not new ones) can be pretty dirty as they are seldom cleaned. They say not to drink anything that has touched the internal water tanks (coffee, tea, etc).

I too go for the pre-packaged drinks when traveling and usually don't have any issues.

And OP, thanks for the post! Nice to see the 787 cabin.

What airplanes have icemakers? I’ve flown quite a few - and none of them had an ice maker. Even the 747 didn’t have one.

Ice gets boarded in bags along with the rest of catering. Frequently when you’re boarding early, and catering has just left, you will see a FA beating a bag of ice with a hammer to break it up. Catering boards the hammers, too, along with the bags…

 

[dishdude]

Was the ice maker broken?

Ha! I don't like ice in my Diet Coke, I think it waters it down.

 

[edyvw]

I am not sensitive to sounds but I would like to understand, which airline (airplane) that you guys have flown that were noisy? I have NEVER experienced a noisy airplane...

before the age of 12, as a family, we would fly internationally 3-4 times a year, granted there was a big gap in flying from 1999-2013, I just haven't came across noisy airplanes.

Flew several times on Antonov AN12.
Once, a guy told me: if you didn't fly on Soviet airplanes, you don't know what flying is. Absolutely true! You always have that feeling that flying is truly unnatural to humans, because, well, it is a Soviet airplane.

Quietest I flew: A350-900, and I would say the best overall airplane I flew on.
However, the one I like the most is Lufthansa configuration A340-600.

 

[Jimmy_Russells]

Wife and I are typically in economy and the 3-3-3 layout isn't great. JAL is the only airline to configure 2-4-2, I would really like to try that out.

 

[Just a civilian pilot]

Flew several times on Antonov AN12.
Once, a guy told me: if you didn't fly on Soviet airplanes, you don't know what flying is. Absolutely true! You always have that feeling that flying is truly unnatural to humans, because, well, it is a Soviet airplane.

Quietest I flew: A350-900, and I would say the best overall airplane I flew on.
However, the one I like the most is Lufthansa configuration A340-600.

A340-600 is a cool- looking aircraft

 

[edyvw]

A340-600 is a cool- looking aircraft

The thing with Lufthansa ones is that the lavatories are under the passenger section, a bunch of them. No lines, no smell, and they have an area where you can just hang out a bit and have a juice or water. And unlike 340-300, they don't feel like they have 4 hair dryers under the wing.

 

[Dborch41]

I am not sensitive to sounds but I would like to understand, which airline (airplane) that you guys have flown that were noisy? I have NEVER experienced a noisy airplane...

before the age of 12, as a family, we would fly internationally 3-4 times a year, granted there was a big gap in flying from 1999-2013, I just haven't came across noisy airplanes.

Ever get stuck in the very back of a DC-9/MD-80? I had the most useless "window" seat ever to exist, I lifted the shade and got nothing but engine. If the window could have been opened I could have easily touched the nacelle.
It was a three hour flight and nauseatingly loud, a pair of noise-cancelling headphones would have been a wise investment.