What happened
American Airlines put its first reconfigured Boeing 777-300ER into service on 2 September 2026 with 70 Flagship Suite business-class seats and no first class. First class sales end on 777-300ER flights from 19 November 2026 and on A321T flights from 28 March 2027. Remaining first-class cabins will be treated as business class.
The retrofit takes each 777-300ER from 304 seats to 330, with 18 extra business seats and 16 extra premium economy seats. Eight of the 70 business seats are Flagship Suite Preferred. American says all 20 jets should be retrofitted sometime in 2027. Business-class pitch falls from 43 inches to 42 inches. Flagship First Dining becomes Flagship Dining on 15 September 2026 and opens to business-class passengers.
Points travellers lose American's last true first-class cabin. They gain Flagship Suite seats and a larger business cabin that should make upgrades easier. A321Ts with 10 first-class seats convert to a domestic layout as A321XLRs take premium transcontinental routes. Use remaining first-class seats before 19 November 2026 on the 777-300ER and 28 March 2027 on the A321T, and look for the new cabin on New York to Buenos Aires and Dallas to London.
- Starts
- Sep 2, 2026
- Numbers
- 20 aircraft: American 777-300ER fleet size
- 330 seats: total seats after 777-300ER retrofit
- 70 seats: business class seats after retrofit
- 44 seats: premium economy seats after retrofit
- 18 seats: business class seats added in the retrofit
- 16 seats: premium economy seats added in the retrofit
- 10 seats: first class seats on each A321T
- Where
- New York (JFK), Buenos Aires (EZE), Dallas (DFW), London (LHR), Sao Paulo (GRU), Sydney (SYD), Tokyo (HND)
- Takeaway
- Look for the new Flagship Suite 777-300ER on JFK–EZE and DFW–LHR, and use remaining first-class inventory before 19 November 2026 on the 777-300ER and 28 March 2027 on the A321T.