American Airlines regional carrier American Eagle to sell first-class seating
By APThursday, February 25, 2010
Regional carrier American Eagle to sell 1st class
DALLAS — The regional affiliate of American Airlines says it will set aside room on some of its planes for first-class seating beginning this summer.
American Eagle said Thursday that by July it will offer nine first-class seats and 54 or 56 coach seats on its Bombardier CRJ-700 jets. Those jets normally have 70 seats and are much smaller than planes operated by big sister American Airlines.
Eagle has just 25 CRJ-700s out of its 290-plane fleet, so it’s far from a complete makeover. Eagle will offer the service only from hubs in Chicago and Dallas-Fort Worth.
The move by Eagle is part of a trend of regional carriers beginning to offer the same amenities found on larger airlines. United Express began offering first-class seating nearly four years ago, and Delta’s regional affiliates are continuing to add premium cabins in more of their planes.
Traditional airlines are shifting more flying from their big mainline carriers such as American and Delta to regional operations such as Eagle and Delta Connection. Once limited to very short trips, the regionals are flying longer distances, and passengers on those routes are used to having a choice of buying a first-class seat.
Delta spokesman Paul Skrbec said putting first-class cabins on more regional jets is part of a larger strategy to “improve the level and consistency of service to our premium customers.”
The regional affiliates of Continental Airlines and US Airways continue to have one class of seating — coach.
On American Eagle, customers in first class will get complimentary meals on longer flights or what Eagle describes as a gourmet snack mix on shorter hops. The airline promises priority boarding, seats with ergonomically designed cushions and speedier baggage service.
Eagle, a unit of AMR Corp., declined to say how much it would cost to add the first-class seating to its CJR planes. The airline is buying another 22 CRJs, the first two of which are due by July, and said those also will include first-class cabins.
(This version CORRECTS number of coach seats in 2nd graf.)
