The 777-300ER is the flagship of the American Airlines fleet. This plane is designed for and primarily serves long-distance international routes. Getting to fly it on a domestic route is unusual.
Identifying the 777-300ER
For anyone interested in plane spotting, you can identify the 777s by their large size, two engines and no wingtip winglets. The 77W is the only American version of the 777 with an exit door over the wing.
Booking the flight
The easiest way for me to experience business class on an American 77W is to fly it on one of the few routes on which AA operates it domestically. It is easy to find space to use a System Wide Upgrade (SWU) on a domestic route. It is even possible to get a complimentary elite upgrade from economy. I booked this flight by buying an inexpensive business-class ticket from LAX to Panama City, Panama (PTY).
The price for business class for the Los Angeles – Charlotte – Miami – Panama – Miami – Los Angeles flights was $770, which is a good deal considering that a refundable, one-way, business-class ticket for MIA to LAX alone normally sells for about $900. I took the unusual step (for me) of purchasing the ticket to ensure sitting in business class on the 77W and to get double Elite Qualifying Miles (EQMs) plus a few thousand extra AAdvantage miles for all of the miles flown on this trip. The added EQMs aid in reaching my goal of earning eight SWUs by accumulating 200,000 EQMs on AA this year.
American Flight 275 Miami to Los Angeles
The flight was scheduled to depart MIA at 5:00pm. After spending a few hours at the Plaza Premium lounge in Terminal E following my flight from Panama, I arrived at my gate in Terminal D at 4:30 just as boarding began. The boarding process was orderly in spite of the crowd of people at the gate. Soon I was at my seat, 4A.
Flight 275 was scheduled to cover 2,342 direct miles between MIA and LAX in five hours and 34 minutes. On this day, the projected flight time was 23 minutes less.
777-300ER Business Class Cabin
The American 777-300ER, or 77W as American designates it, has 310 passenger seats– 8 first class, 52 business class, 30 main cabin extra, and 220 regular economy.
Business class is divided into two cabins. My seat, 4A, is in the forward business-class section between first class and the business class galley and lavatories. There are only two rows and eight seats in this section. It is an ideal location for privacy and quiet.
Unlike the rear business-class section with 11 rows and 44 seats, the only people walking through the aisles in this part of business class are the eight passengers sitting there and a few flight attendants. Even in row 4, which is closest to the galley, it was still quiet and peaceful. With noise-cancelling headphones on, I could not tell the galley and lavs were there.
Business Class Seat Features and Amenities
Seat 4A American 77W
There was a large pillow and quilt in each seat. Even though this was a domestic flight American provided a mini amenity kit with eye mask, socks, lip balm, hand lotion, and a sanitizing wipe.
American provides Bose noise-cancelling headsets for business class. They are stored in the console next to the seat.
The seat is roomy and comfortable. The seat pitch is 43 inches. The bed length is 75 – 78 inches according to American. When the seat is in an upright position, my feet could not reach the ottoman without stretching.
Controls for the seat are located within easy reach on a panel at eye level. They are simple to understand and operate. This panel also contains the individual reading light, power outlet and audio/visual connections.
Storage space is more than adequate. There is a storage area under the side table for putting water bottles, newspapers and other items.
The headset compartment can also be used to securely stow gear during takeoff and
landing.
A practical feature of this seat is the storage compartment for shoes. It is located at floor level on the aisle side of the seat. It is easy to reach without getting up from the seat.
Domestic Business Class Service
After boarding, the service began with an introduction and greeting from the flight attendant who was responsible for the forward area. That was followed by a tray of water or juice.
Under the circumstances, it was disappointing that the flight attendants did not take individual orders for the pre-departure beverages (PDBs). On Delta Airlines, individual orders for PDBs or at least champagne/sparkling wine would be offered in domestic business class.
The plane departed on runway 8R (Eight Right). Runways are numbered based on the magnetic direction of the runway divided by ten and rounded to the nearest whole number. Runway 8R has a magnetic heading of approximately 080 degrees. The R means that there is at least one other runway at MIA to the left on the same heading. Departing on runway 8R, the initial climb was in an easterly direction towards Miami Beach followed by a climbing left turn to the course to Los Angeles.
After leveling at cruising altitude heading west, the flight attendants took orders for drinks and served them with the traditional warm nuts that accompany the first beverage service on American flights.
I ordered a Woodford Reserve small-batch bourbon. American only began serving Woodford on April 1. I think it is by far the best liquor American serves, and it is a huge improvement over Dewar’s scotch, which had been my regular choice of adult beverage.
Meal Service
Dinner service began shortly after the beverages were delivered. I had pre-ordered the dinner entrée. On American, meals can be selected on-line between 30 days and 24 hours prior to departure. The dinner menu, which had been distributed prior to departure and orders taken or confirmed, was:
Although the creamy truffled mac & cheese was tempting, I stuck with my original order – grilled halibut.
After beverages came the starter, char siu duck with vegetables. It was served with a tossed salad and vinaigrette dressing and warm bread and butter. I added a glass of white wine to go with the meal. American does a nice job with the presentation by covering the tray table with white linen and serving the dishes on white china.
The entrée followed.
The entire meal was delicious. The halibut was moist and the fennel sauce was flavorful and accompanied the fish well.
For desert I chose the familiar American ice cream sundae with strawberry topping, whipped cream and nuts over the plate of assorted cheeses.
Cruise
After dinner I watched the Revenant again and followed the flight progress on the video flight following system.
AA installed an excellent flight following system on its 777-300s. A multitude of views and information can be selected.
I liked the HUD (heads up display) that shows the view from the cockpit with airspeed, attitude, and altimeter displays superimposed on the screen.
With a flight time of over five hours, following dinner and the movie there was still time to stretch out in flat-bed mode for a short nap before landing in Los Angeles.
Overall Impession
The food, service and amenities on an international flight on this aircraft would be even more luxurious. Nevertheless, I really liked this experience in business class on the AA 777-300ER. It was well worth the price of my business-class ticket.
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