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After spending some time in the lounge, it was time to head to the gate. I was excited to be heading out on my first international trip since March 2020. First stop, London! I was originally supposed to be flying a different airline to London. There ended up being a couple of different changes to my tickets. I was flying American Airlines Flagship Business product.

While I preferred the other airline, I was fine with AA as I’ve flown this DFW-LHR route before. American Airlines has a solid hard product flying across the Atlantic.

In this Article:
Booking
Check-In
Boarding
Seat
Food and Drink
Bathroom

Booking

I wasn’t really committed to a summer destination. I just knew I wanted to go somewhere. Using Google Flights, I found many great business class deals to Europe. I zeroed in on a week-long trip to Zurich, Switzerland. The entire round-trip ticket was just under $2,100. Typically I see business class flights to Europe in excess of $5,000. I booked directly through AA.

Originally, this was supposed to be a British Airways flight but my connecting flights on to Zurich got cancelled. To make the new flights to Zurich, I needed to move to this American Airlines flight.

Alternatively, you can use American Airlines miles. Focus on finding saaver space for 57,500 each way. You’ll need 115,000 miles for the round trip. AA miles are best earned via credit cards like the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite™ Mastercard®.

Check-In

When I arrived at DFW Terminal D, it was pretty quiet. I found the priority check-in area (a benefit of flying business class or first class tickets). There was an AA worker double checking that would had all your required documents before getting into the check-in line. The joys of flying with COVID requirements.

There were a couple of people in line when I arrived. It took about 10 minutes for the two AA agents on duty to check-in the other passengers before I it was my turn. The agent was friendly as she checked my documents. I presented my passport, COVID test to transit the UK, UK passenger locator form and Swiss passenger form. After a couple of minutes, I was handed my paper boarding passes and I was off to the lounge.

Boarding

The boarding process started right on time after a couple of delays. The plane was delayed due to storms coming from Miami. First was Concierge Key members followed by Group 1. Then it was Group 2 which was my group.

American Airlines 777 Flagship Business Seat

My flight was operated by a Boeing 777-300 AKA a 77W. The first two rows are first class. Then a mini two row business class cabin. The main business class cabin is huge. There are 11 rows of lie flat seats arranged in a 1-2-1 configuration. I selected seat 10J which is a solo seat on at the window in the middle of the cabin. All seats have direct aisle access.

The interior of doesn’t have any AA branding like other airlines. There are small monitors throughout the cabin hanging from the ceiling that display the flight path and current position. I liked not having to navigate away from my movie to see our current position.

The outside solo seats and angled away towards the windows for privacy. The interior seats are angled in towards the other seat. People traveling together would prefer the interior seats so it’s easier to talk to one another.

The seat pod is a good size. The seat itself had a good deal of padding for comfort in both the bottom and back. There was also an adjustable headrest. The footwell is a large size providing enough space for those with large feet.

Storage isn’t an issue as there was plenty of space. Near the footwell was a space for a larger items like a laptop or shoes. Near the IFE and seat controls there was another space for smaller items like your phone or a water bottle. There is also a USB power outlet located in this space.

On the right side of the seat where the control. There was one for the IFE and the seat as well as an air nozzle. There was also an international power outlet for laptops. The IFE remote could be removed from its home for easier use. The seat controls were easy to use and understand. You have complete control of the way you lay or sit.

Waiting at my seat, where a couple of items. First, was a blanket and pillow from Casper. It was wrapped in plastic which is not a new COVID precaution. The blanket felt light but was thick enough to keep me warm throughout the flight. My pillow was full sized and great. It provided excellent support. My head didn’t sink in which better than a ton of hotel pillows.

Also waiting was the amenity kit from Shinola. It had a little tab showing it hadn’t been previously opened. There wasn’t a lot to this kit. There was a black eye mask and socks, small pen, DS&DURGA lotion, dental kit containing a toothbrush and toothpaste, earplugs and lastly some coupon codes for Shinola.

The IFE came out from the left side of the pod. Although it is touch screen, it was a bit too far away for me to reach. It also wasn’t very responsive to touch. You are better off using the remote to control it.

Previously, I received PJs on this flight and other Flagship Business flights. I guess with COVID they weren’t going that? I was a bit disappointed by the lack of PJs. The colors looked good throughout the flight. When lying down the screen is difficult to seat. I wish the screen could tilt down some.

The tray was above the larger storage area. It was a good size and can easily accommodate a 15-inch laptop when fully unfolded.

I liked the color scheme of the seat pod. I found the pod to provide excellent privacy.

American Airlines 777 Flagship Business Food and Drink

Normally, meal starts with warmed mixed nuts. Due to COVID, nuts are served prepackaged from Stellar Snacks containing almonds, cashews and pecans.

The menu was waiting at my seat when I arrived. American Airlines allows you to preselect your meal starting 30 days prior to departure. You must select your meal 24 hours before your flight to be guaranteed your choice.

The choices for today’s flight were braised short rib, roasted chicken breast, seared red snapper and spinach and ricotta rotolo pasta. I selected the roasted chicken breast. Prior to departure, a flight attendant confirmed my choice.

Dinner was served about an hour after take-off. It was all on one tray with everything wrapped. I look forward to after COVID when meals are presented better.

The appetizer was cajun grilled shrimp. I didn’t try it as I’m not a fan of seafood.

When I unwrapped my main dish, I thought it looked a bit funny. I didn’t remember the chicken dish coming with peppers. I took a bite and immediately knew something was off. I actually was served the red snapper dish. Luckily, I’m not allergic to seafood.

I tried to address this with the flight attendants. First it took about 20 mins to get their attention then was dismissed as there wasn’t any remaining chicken dishes. This could have ended badly for someone with an allergy. I submitted a compliant in with AA. Their response was dismissive. Let me be clear, I’m not looking for any points. Something does need to be done to ensure this doesn’t happen to someone with a seafood allergy.

The red snapper wasn’t very good. It came with a lemon beurre blanc sauce, white wine risotto, glazed sugar snaps and a pepper medley. The veggies were great. There was also a roll. It was cold and hard. The meal also came with a raspberry cheesecake tart. This was the highlight of the meal. Overall, this meal wasn’t the best.

There was also a selection of drinks. I’ll let you take a look in the options from the menu.

Breakfast was also served. There were two options egg and fire roasted corn enchilada and a fresh fruit bowl. Against my better judgement I chose the enchilada option.

Again, everything was served on one tray. The egg and fire roasted corn enchilada was served with one link of sriracha pineapple chicken sausage and black beans. It was rounded out with some fruit and a croissant roll thing. The enchilada was inedible. The sausage was good as was the roll. The fruit was perfect.

Bathroom

There were bathrooms located in the front of the cabin. Another option was located in the back of the cabin separating the business cabin from premium economy cabin. It’s a typically airplane bathroom. Here are the pictures.

American Airlines 777 Flagship Business Bottom Line

I spent most the flight watching movies. I think I slept a grand hotel of an hour and a half. Before I knew it, it was time to deplane. Despite the issues with food, I enjoy the Flagship Business hard product. I hope in time American Airlines puts more focus in the food for business class.

Now to head to the terrible transfer process at London-Heathrow.

These opinions in this article are the author’s not those of a bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.