American Airlines' 777-300ER Aircraft Nearly Complete With Premium Economy Refit
American Airlines flyers can rejoice, as flying on the 777-300ER (77W) just got a little more comfortable — the last 77W is headed for premium economy refurbishment as of Tuesday.
The plane, N734AR, operated its last revenue flight from London (LHR) to Dallas (DFW) on May 22, 2018, before heading to Everett (PAE) to be refit with premium economy seats. As of May 23, 2018, all 77Ws in service have a true premium economy cabin. N734AR should be back in service in 7-10 days.
Under the old configuration there were 310 seats, set up in the following arrangement:
| First | 8 |
|---|---|
| Business | 52 |
| Main Cabin Extra | 48 |
| Economy | 202 |
After the refit, the 77W aircraft now have 304 seats, set up in the following arrangement:
| First | 8 |
|---|---|
| Business | 52 |
| Premium Economy | 28 |
| Main Cabin Extra | 28 |
| Economy | 188 |
The front of the plane has largely remained the same. The premium economy cabin is set up with eight seats across in a 2-4-2 seating arrangement. Passengers traveling in premium economy will enjoy wider seats, pre-ordered meals, complimentary alcoholic beverages, amenity kits, and Casper bedding. Each seat is about 19 inches wide between armrests, and they should feature a similar amount of pitch as the seats on the 772 (38 inches), but we've reached out to AA to confirm. Also on the newly reconfigured 77W, Row 16 is an exit row. Seats 16A and 16L do not have a window although they do come with virtually unlimited leg room and a physical leg rest. Check out this review of an AA premium economy experience on board the 777-200.
With this refit, American Airlines is getting closer toward its goal of refitting all of its long-haul aircraft with the new cabin. All work was originally planned to be complete by Q2 2018, but it is slightly behind schedule. There are still 12 777-200 aircraft mostly with Zodiac forward/backward seating, and 20 787-8 aircraft, also with the same Zodiac seating, that still need to be refit.
“The remaining 772s should be completed in the fall/winter timeframe," an AA spokesperson said. "More details on the 788s will come later in the year.”
You can find the newly refit 77W operating on American Airlines' signature routes from hubs in Los Angeles (LAX), Dallas (DFW), Miami (MIA), and New York (JFK) to destinations such as Hong Kong (HKG), London (LHR), and Sao Paulo (GRU).