Review: American Airlines Flagship First Class (A321)
American Airlines First Class is one of the last 3 cabin products still flying transcontinental. The A321s that American Airlines deploys on this route have been in service for a long time, and they’re showing their age. While First Class is without a doubt an upgrade over American Airlines Flagship business class, I’m not sure I’d be willing to pay the premium again.
Let’s take a look at what you can expect when flying on American Airlines Flagship First Class.
Booking American Airlines Flagship First Class
| First Class | Aircraft | Route | Flight Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| American Airlines 1243 | A321-T | Boston (BOS) to Los Angeles (LAX) | 6 Hours 22 Minutes |
I booked this American Airlines First Class flight using FinnAir Avios at a total cost of 40,000 Avios and $5.60 USD. While you won’t find that pricing on FinnAir’s website, you can search Qatar’s website to check partner availability, then call or chat with FinnAir to book.
If you’re new to award travel, you’ll be pleased to know that all Avios can easily be transferred from one airline to another. With that in mind, British Airways Avios is often the best entry point for Canadians who are looking to make a redemption like this. Avion points earned from eligible RBC credit cards, like the RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card, transfer to Avios at a rate of 1:1, often with up to 30% transfer bonuses.
RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card
The RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card earns flexible Avion points that can be transferred to British Airways Avios, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles, American Airlines AAdvantage, WestJet Rewards, or used against travel purchases via the fixed-rate Air Travel Redemption Schedule.
OFFER
55,000 Avion points
MINSPEND
$5,000
EST. VALUE
$1,045+
ANNUAL FEE
$120
FOREX FEES
Yes
EXPIRY
Aug 12, 2026
Ground Experience
Sadly, Boston doesn’t have an American Airlines Flagship Lounge, but domestic first class passengers have access to the Admirals Club lounge here, which is above average compared to other locations I’ve visited.
I’m a big believer in North American airline apps as well, even to the point of it being one of my favorite pieces of tech for travel days. For example, the American Airlines mobile app lets you add a widget to your lock screen that easily displays the time until boarding begins.
Cabin Arrangement
The American Airlines Flagship First Class cabin on the A321 has a total of 10 seats and is arranged in a 1-1 configuration with seats in a reverse herringbone style.
Since all seats have aisle access, there really isn’t a bad seat to be had in this cabin, so it’s really up to your preference.
The seats in the back of the cabin will have a slight advantage, as you’ll get a small storage area behind your head as a result of the cabin design.
Seat
The seat is the largest I’ve seen on a narrowbody plane; it’s reminiscent of many reverse-herringbone seats on widebody jets, but it feels a bit dated compared to something like Air Canada’s Signature Class.
Arriving at the seat, everything is neatly placed: a menu, a water bottle, headphones, slippers, and an amenity kit tucked away in the storage pocket. You’ll also find a universal power outlet where the amenity kit is.
The footwell in these seats is large, and there’s plenty of storage built into the seat, which feels premium and has integrated lighting. I felt there was more than enough space to store my shoes here while still using it as a footrest.
The TV folds out from the seatback in front of you, which is never my favorite orientation, but on narrowbody planes, it’s a common occurrence, even Air Canada’s new A321XLR will feature a similar design for its business class seats.
There’s a pretty sizable gap from the edge of the armrest to the wall of the plane. I feel like it was a decent spot to put light things like my vest, which I wanted access to, rather than leaving it in the overhead bin.
I also appreciated having my own air vent!
The tray table folds out from the armrest, rather than the front of the seat, like modern reverse herringbone products.
It worked perfectly fine, and I slightly preferred it as it gave a bit more room to operate when the tray table was stowed. But not having storage in this part of the seat was an inconvenience.
The aisle side of the seat has a manually adjustable armrest that was quite worn out. It wobbled quite badly when any pressure was applied.
Just in front of the armrest is where you’ll find the safety literature.
Seat controls are over your shoulder and include a decent level of customization. No massage function, but I liked the preset shortcuts for takeoff/landing and lay flat. The handheld could do a decent amount, and even host the map, which is a nice second display to have around when entertainment is on the main screen.
Also pictured below is the “shelf” that the last row of First class gets as a benefit of seat design.
Bed
The bed was perfectly fine, but not a standout or a drawback. It did what it said it would do! I know previously AA had a partnership with Casper, I don’t know if the bedding was any different then, but it didn’t strike me one way or another here.
Amenity Kit
The first class amenity kit exceeded my expectations in terms of what it included. While there’s not a huge upgrade in comfort to be found in First Class versus Business on this plane, American Airlines certainly tries to provide value for their first class passengers.
The amenity kit contained socks, an eye mask, a keychain, earplugs, a dental kit, lip balm, lotion, and a small wet hand towel.
Dining
Service started as soon as I boarded, with a choice of welcome drinks. I opted for the champagne, which was provided by Vollereaux. Being served in a plastic cup was exactly what I expected from American Airlines.
The next service happened about 30 minutes after take off and began with a hot towel and tablecloth setting.
It was followed by nuts, a scone, coffee, water, and I was offered a green smoothie. The glassware was all branded AA, which was a nice attention to detail.
For reference, here was the menu for the flight:
This was followed by a fruit plate and a pastry; the “cinnamon bun croissant thing” was really tasty, but the fruit was pretty average. It was followed by the main serving of breakfast, which I opted for the American Breakfast. Not surprisingly, it didn’t live up to the eggs served on Lufthansa’s First Class.
Throughout the remainder of the flight, I requested a couple of beverages, including espresso, which was served in a tiny coffee cup, and a glass of champagne, which was served in proper glassware.
Before landing, I was offered a charcuterie board, which was not listed on the menu, but was a welcome refreshment.
The First Class cabin also has access to a snack bin, and as a staple of premium cabins on AA, freshly baked cookies were offered.
Entertainment
Entertainment Console
The entertainment system on these planes is old and tired; there’s no other way to describe it. But that doesn’t mean it’s not usable; you’ll just have to be prepared for some bumps in your experiences.
The headphones are Bang & Olufsen and are of decent quality, but you may have to fidget with the audio cable to get a stable connection.
The interface is a bit slow to react, but with some patience, you’ll be able to navigate to the TV shows, movies, audio selection, games, and map.
The systems have a tendency to provide a blurry image, and it’s something I experienced flying AA Flagship Business in 2025 as well. But I did enjoy being able to pull up the moving map on the handset.
WiFi
On this flight, the WiFi was free; all you needed to do was log in to your AAdvantage account, and you’re granted access.
However, not all planes are equipped with the equipment to provide free Wi-Fi, so your experience may vary. One thing I loved about the connectivity is that the AA app stayed active with its countdown widget to easily see how much flight time remained.
Conclusion
I’m glad I got to experience AA Domestic First Class before it’s retired when the A321XLR is fully rolled out to the fleet. That being said, it’s not obviously worth the extra 13,000 Avios (when booking with FinnAir) over business class, although sometimes you may not have a choice with availability. I liked having more privacy than in the business-class cabin, and a window with direct aisle access is always a luxury. The catering is about the same level to me.
Overall, it’s a more comfortable way to cross the continent, but I think the sweetspot is still AA Flagship Business Class booked with FinnAir for only 27,000 Avios.
