American Airlines operate services between Dublin and Chicago with the relatively new Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner. There are two classes of service, Flagship Business and the Main Cabin, which is what they call Economy Class.
Extra leg room seats are available at the front of the main cabin in a sub-class called Main Cabin Extra. You can pay for these seats or if you have high enough frequent flyer status, you can select them for free. These promise several more inches leg room over the standard seat.
AA209 – Dublin to Chicago (DUB-ORD)
17 May 2018
Boeing 787-8 – N812AA
Seat: Main Cabin Extra 8A
Departure: 09:55 Arrival: 12:00
After spending some time in the very nice 51st & Green Lounge after US Preclearance, it was time to board. Happily I was on pretty quickly which meant I could take pictures of the cabin without people in the frame.
Bulkhead Row in Main Cabin Extra
The choice Main Cabin Extra seats are in row 8, which is the bulkhead. You have more space at face height which adds to the feeling of space, plus two whole large 787 Dreamliner windows all to yourself. Pleasingly my feet only just touched the bulkhead at full stretch.
The Dreamliner Bathroom
Before we headed into the air, I headed for the facilities. A latte, a cocktail and a water in the 51st & Green lounge promised a cross legged taxi to the runway if I didn’t sort it out on the ground.
Drinks Service
After the well produced safety demonstration video, we found ourselves in the air in short order. A drinks service is the first thing that happens and I decided on red wine.
Lunch Time in Main Cabin Extra
Not long after the drinks service, the friendly crew came around with the lunch service and I chose the beef option. When it is handed to you, it is a plastic extravaganza of wrappings and film.
Movies and Drinks… Or Is That Wi-Fi?
Once everything had been cleared away, the crew offered more drinks (“Yes, please!”) and then I checked out the movie selection. Screens come out from the arm rest in the bulkhead row and the selection was pretty good.
Ice Cream and Folded Pizza
Later on in the flight we received ice creams which was a nice touch. The Beckleberry’s rich chocolate went down a treat. Who says no to ice cream?
Overall Thoughts
American Airlines Main Cabin Extra between Dublin and Chicago is very impressive. Leg room is quite decent and the wireless Internet works well. Entertainment options are very good, even though I didn’t watch anything in the end.
I thought the service from the cabin crew was excellent. They are efficient in doing drinks top ups while collecting the rubbish so that no-one really goes without, plus they are friendly and obliging when requesting extra items.
The highlight for me was the lunch, ice cream and folded pizza service. Food quality and taste was excellent, far better than I thought it was going to be. Presentation of the trays on delivery should be better though and American really should look at reducing the amount of packaging on the tray.
Have you flown the Main Cabin or Main Cabin Extra on an international flight with American? How was your experience? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.
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Hey, I’m seated in 8F in the Boeing 787-8 plane. I’ve never sat in Bulkhead before. I’ve read from others that you can’t have a bag with you as there’s no underseat to put it. I often use things from my bag during my trip. (Sleep mask, laptop, blanket, snacks, etc). Is it possible to hold a small bag in my lap? Or that isn’t allowed? ty!
*I’m on an overnight 11hr flight. Unsure if I should try change seats to a non-bulkhead
Which airline are you flying with? You are correct, you are not permitted to have a bag with you during take-off or landing. It needs to go into an overhead bin during those times. Other than that, you can have your bag at your feet if you wish. So it’s only take-off and landing where you need to put the bag in the overhead locker – other times you are fine. I hope that helps!
I booked with American Airlines but my flight with the Bulkhead is Air Canada (not sure if that makes a difference)
Ok that is good to know and possibly doable for me then! I have chronic pain in one leg and want to be able to stretch out so I was moved to main cabin extra at the bulkhead.
Yes, you should be fine. I find that if you’re tall, your legs will meet the bulkhead before you can fully stretch out though. Even so it’s generally more spacious in feeling as there is no seat in your face. Have a good trip!
Do you have any pictures of the entertainment screen setup in Row 8 (front of main cabin extra)? I’m wondering about the position of the screen from that row. Thanks!
I don’t have a picture of that, I’m afraid. Only the Row 7 I was sat in. The rest of the screens are in the seat back in front of you, which is identical in any seat. Any picture of American’s main cabin on the 787 will show you where these are. Good luck and sorry I didn’t have one for you!
What is the difference between main cabin extra and premium economy on AA? They’re both better coach class products.
Main Cabin Extra is standard economy class with more leg room, up to 6″ apparently. Premium Economy is a totally different class altogether, with better service than Main Cabin and so on.
Thanks!
Is MCX a new product, or are they just selling bulkhead and exit row seats in coach with a new name?
Is PE a separate cabin on international and domestic (long haul, one would assume) flights?
I’ve tweeted these questions before to AA, but I never got answers about the products, just links to the website.
Well, it depends on the aircraft. On the 787, there are several rows of Main Cabin Extra – 6 rows down each side and 4 of the middle rows. So it’s not just the bulkhead rows… though on some aircraft like the Embraers, it is just the bulkhead row, so it depends. From this month, Main Cabin Extra passengers also get free beer, wine and spirits when flying domestically.
Premium Economy is a completely separate cabin altogether, with a better seat than Main Cabin along with all the extra enhancements such as better meal and separate cabin and so on.