American Airlines is all set to heat up the inflight experience ahead of the summer travel season with a wave of premium onboard enhancements to make travel even more enjoyable. Customers will fly in style with a new, reimagined amenity kit series and bedding, and savour new dishes throughout their journey. In the future, customers can anticipate an increasingly elevated experience with the arrival of new Flagship Suite seats.
“We thoughtfully curate each element of the onboard experience so every customer can look forward to the time they spend in flight,” says Kim Cisek, American’s vice president of customer experience. “Part of the magic of travel is connecting our customers to the people and experiences that matter most to them. We’re taking that concept to the skies by introducing a new, dynamic onboard program that’s inspired by feedback from our customers and team members.”
American’s primary amenity kit will be available yearlong for customers flying in premium cabins. The kit will include staple amenities customers have come to expect while in flight, such as a toothbrush, dental kit, eye mask and earplugs, in addition to new and evolving skincare products and offerings.
Elevated bedding inspired by customer feedback
Customers will travel in elevated comfort with new bedding, pillows and sleepwear that deliver on customer expectations for a restful experience on board. In American’s research with customers, travelers shared that 75% prefer dual-sided pillows, with different materials on each side of the pillow. Based on this feedback, customers traveling across Flagship First Class or Flagship Business Class will enjoy a dual-sided pillow with cool touch fabric on one side, and traditional fabric on the other.
Those traveling in Flagship First Class on international flights will continue to enjoy a set of pajamas, based on feedback that 80% of first-class customers value having pajamas onboard. In addition, travelers in Flagship Business Class on all international flights will now enjoy slippers onboard, instead of only on ultra long-haul flights.
Customers in all cabins, including Premium Economy and Main Cabin, will enjoy enhanced bedding, with cabin-specific options such as lumbar pillows, throw blankets, premium duvets and fleece blankets all developed from premium brands that are leaders in their space.
American collaborated with the inflight textile company John Horsfall to develop bedding made with recycled materials from their Re-Thread collection.
Nearly all of the pillows, duvets and blankets created for American flights were made with recycled fibers that maintain a premium feel, while filled bedding includes 100% recycled fill. To reduce single-use plastic waste connected to the distribution of pillows and blankets, customers traveling in Flagship First, Flagship Business and Premium Economy will now receive their bedding in a reusable zipper product bag also made with recycled fibers. Using the bag will save 25 tons of plastic waste a year.
Beyond the new inflight amenities, bedding and dining options on board this summer, customers can look forward to an even more elevated experience onboard future Boeing 787-9, 777-300 and Airbus A321XLR aircraft, featuring a new interior with the Flagship Suite seat and refreshed seats and amenities across Premium Economy and Main Cabin.
Customers traveling in the Flagship Suite seat will be surrounded by comfort and convenience including wireless charging, Bluetooth capability and multiple storage spaces. With standard features such as lie-flat seats and direct-aisle access, American has modernized the experience by adding privacy doors and the ability to relax in a chaise lounge position, making the Flagship Suite seat a personalized experience in the skies.
Customers looking for even more luxury will be able to further enhance their experience with a distinguished front row experience on new Boeing 787-9 and retrofitted 777-300 aircraft through the Flagship Suite Preferred seat. This seat will offer customers expansive space, several storage areas and exclusive amenities like a Nest Bedding mattress pad, a throw blanket, a memory foam lumbar pillow, Nest Bedding pajamas and an exclusive amenity kit featuring additional skincare products from Thirteen Lune by Joanna Vargas and Relevant.
As these new interiors roll out, customers traveling in Premium Economy will also enjoy new amenities like wireless charging, additional storage space and privacy headrest wings. Customers traveling in Main Cabin will enjoy new 4K seatback screens and new Bluetooth connectivity and AC and USB-A/USB-C charging ports. All customers will be able to browse high-speed Wi-Fi and watch up to 1,500 free entertainment content offerings.
American worked with a mix of boutique and well-known brands to create a program that will evolve throughout the years and feature rotating kit designs and high-quality skincare products in addition to the new bedding program.
The new program will be on board more than 300 international and transcontinental flights beginning Memorial Day weekend in Flagship First Class, Flagship Business Class and Premium Economy cabins.