By Shawn Gallagher
Hello internet from JFK Airport in New York City! I recently flew (as I always do) a quick flight from New York to Boston on American Airlines and their Embraer E175 aircraft. This is a very common aircraft in their fleet as well as for other airlines. I had a ride in economy class, in seat 21A.
I’ve previously reviewed their First Class product on the E175, so be sure to check that one out as well.
To the airport we go!
At The Airport
To start, I was running late for this flight. I foolishly chose to get an extra half hour of sleep in and ended up stuck in a lot of traffic on my Uber ride there. With less than 30 minutes til boarding, I was still stuck in traffic on the highway.
For me, the more of a commute a flight is, the less of an effort I seem to make to get to the airport at a good time (ironically).
I arrived at the airport about 20 minutes prior to boarding. I still had to line up and go through TSA, which always takes some time.
I didn’t have time to take photos of my aircraft, since I was in a rush. But here’s a photo of an E175 from another one of my flights.
My aircraft was N128HQ, a 16 year old Embraer E175 delivered back in February 2008.
My boarding group got called just as I got to the gate. Whew!
On Board
The seats on the E175 aircraft are in a 2-2 configuration, which I prefer much more than the 3-3 on the other traditional narrowbodies, like the Boeing 737 or the Airbus A320. Boarding is quicker and more efficient when there are fewer seats, which I think a lot of us can agree is a big plus.
The seats themselves are a standard 30-31 inches of pitch. They’re not that roomy, but I can’t complain, considering the New York – Boston flights are really short.
The best seat for legroom on this aircraft is row 8 (seat 8C to be specific). I flew those seats by upgrade several years ago, but unfortunately I don’t have photos (it was before my blogging days!). I’ll have to catch a flight and do a review on those seats sometime soon.
We pushed back on time.
This was a full flight. It was also one of those classic Monday morning super status flights, where the majority on board are commuters and business travelers with elite status.
Monday morning flights from 6 to 8am flights are often like this.
The taxi to the runway was pretty quick for JFK standards. We were behind “just” 4 other planes.
I got a great view of New York City as we left. Seeing the city from the air really puts into perspective how big the city is.
Flying never gets old.
This was a very smooth flight, and the pilots were able to turn off the seatbelt sign for a little.
Having flown this route many times, the seatbelt sign usually stays on for the entire flight. It’s always nice to fly on a day with good weather.
Soon after, we began our descent into Boston.
Upon landing, we passed by the fire department doing training on airport grounds.
Concluding Thoughts
This was a very smooth flight and a very smooth commute. Although it was a full flight, boarding and the overall experience went efficiently, partly thanks to the smaller aircraft and the many other commuters and business travelers, who are used to flying a lot.
The E175 is the most comfortable out of the regional jets. Some might prefer it over the traditional narrowbodies, but that may come down to personal preference. Ultimately, seat pitch and service are pretty consistent across the fleet. I do like how it’s a smaller aircraft, and its 2-2 configuration is much better than a 3-3.
All photos taken by the author.