{
  "id": 5108361,
  "title": "American Airlines boosts premium seating on 777 jets as upscale travel grows",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/02/american-airlines-boosts-premium-seating-on-777-jets-as-upscale",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-09-02T14:28:03.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Business Times - Companies & Markets",
    "slug": "the-business-times-companies-markets",
    "url": "https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/transport-logistics/american-airlines-boosts-premium-seating-777-jets-upscale-travel-grows"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "American Airlines is increasing premium seating on its Boeing 777-300ER planes for long-haul routes, as upscale travel becomes increasingly popular. The airline is retrofitting 20 of its 777-300ER aircraft, beginning commercial service on September 2 from New York to Buenos Aires. This upgrade will see 144 premium seats added, bringing the total to about 44% of total seats, up from 38% previously. The revised layout includes 70 Flagship Suite business-class seats with privacy doors, 44 Premium Economy seats, and 30 Main Cabin Extra seats, which is American's extra-legroom economy product. The airline is eliminating Flagship First, a top-tier international first-class cabin, as part of the retrofit. American is phasing out international first class due to low demand, which will free up more business-class seats that travelers are willing to pay for. Premium travelers contribute nearly half of American's ticketed revenue in the second quarter, accounting for about 30% of its seats. American expects to complete upgrades of all 20 aircraft by 2027. The retrofitted aircraft will also feature upgraded inflight entertainment and free high-speed Wi-Fi for AAdvantage members. This move is part of a broader trend among US carriers to focus on premium travel, as higher-end products have been growing faster than more budget-conscious offerings. Southwest Airlines is evaluating premium products like airport lounges and extra premium seating, while Frontier is adding first-class-style seats, and JetBlue is expanding its premium offerings with airport lounges.",
  "summary": "The first retrofitted aircraft will begin commercial service on Wednesday (Sep 2) from New York to Buenos Aires",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "CNBC",
        "title": "American Airlines continues premium push with redesigned Boeing planes",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/02/american-airlines-continues-premium-push-with-redesigned-boeing-planes",
        "published": "2026-09-02T14:00:01.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Investing.com",
        "title": "American Airlines boosts premium seating on 777 jets as upscale travel grows",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/02/american-airlines-boosts-premium-seating-on-777-jets-as-upscale-5126084",
        "published": "2026-09-02T16:36:34.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}