American took delivery of its first Airbus A319 this week and has published the cabin specs (and more) on their website.
What strikes me as odd is that first class recline is only 3-inches, whereas regular coach offers 4-inches with Main Cabin Extra getting 6-inches. Is that an error?
American Airlines A319 cabin specs
United, by contrast, offers 6-inches of recline in first class on its A319s with coach getting 4-inches and Economy Plus 5-inches.
United Airlines A319 cabin specs
I suppose recline isn’t that big of a deal given American initially plans to fly this bird on relatively short-haul routes from DFW, according to their press release. They include Charlotte, Cleveland, Memphis and Wichita.
But if American begins flying this aircraft on coast-to-coast redeyes, I’d probably rather be in Main Cabin Extra for a more comfortable reclining sleep position. Westbound, however, I’d still want the more spacious first class seat.
– Follow Darren Booth on Twitter, @FrequentlyFlyin, for more airline, hotel and travel industry news, reviews and opinions.
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I think this has to do with the nature of the seat. Whereas the UA seats hinge and the seat back drop down. the AA seats pivot and, while the seat back drops, the bottom moves forward. Thus, AA achieves an equal amount of recline with less impinging on the space of the seat behind.
@downhillcrasher: That definitely could be, though I wonder if the coach seats don’t operate similarly.
Too bad that their are only 8 seats in first. More recline in coach, especially on short haul, just means someone in front of you intruding on your space.