Overview
- American’s first retrofitted Boeing 777-300ER entered commercial service on Wednesday, Sept. 2, operating from New York-JFK to Buenos Aires with a total of 330 seats.
- The aircraft is configured with 70 enclosed Flagship Suite business seats, 44 premium-economy seats, 30 Main Cabin Extra seats and 186 economy seats, raising premium capacity to 144 seats.
- The carrier will stop selling Flagship First on 777-300ER routes for travel beginning Nov. 19, 2026, and will stop sales on transcontinental A321T flights beginning Mar. 28, 2027, with ticketed first-class passengers eligible for fare-difference refunds or full refunds if they choose not to travel.
- American plans to retrofit all 20 of its 777-300ERs by sometime in 2027, will reclassify remaining first-class seats as business inventory during the transition, and will offer free high-speed Wi‑Fi to AAdvantage members on retrofitted jets.
- The overhaul reflects a wider industry push to capture higher-spending travelers because premium passengers generated nearly half of American’s ticketed revenue in Q2 despite occupying only about 30% of seats, though the refit reduces galley and lavatory space and removes the walk-up bar.