American Airlines introduces premium-heavy Boeing 787-9 on New York-London route

American Airlines currently operates a fleet of 27 Boeing 787s, with an average age of just over six years. The company has orders for another 25 units. Most of these aircraft have a three-class configuration with room for up to 285 passengers. However, the new layout reduces capacity to 244 seats, including an expanded business class section with flatbeds for Flagship Business passengers and an upgraded premium economy cabin.

The standard economy section now makes up about two-thirds of total seating, while business and premium economy offerings have increased in proportion. This shift reflects a broader industry trend toward premium-heavy configurations on lucrative transatlantic routes.

While American Airlines has never before scheduled a Boeing 787-8 or -9 on the JFK-LHR route, data shows that both models are widely used elsewhere in its network. For example, Cirium reports that this month alone, American has scheduled over 1,800 flights using the smaller Boeing 787-8 model—primarily on domestic routes such as Miami–Philadelphia and international services like Los Angeles–Tokyo Haneda.

The larger Boeing 787-9 is mainly deployed on transatlantic routes such as Chicago–London and Philadelphia–London Heathrow, with hundreds of flights scheduled each month.

American Airlines is one of three major U.S. carriers serving London Heathrow from multiple hubs across the United States. It is part of the oneworld alliance and operates out of several major airports nationwide under its parent company, American Airlines Group.