American’s new Boeing 787-9s with the Flagship Suites are set to begin service on June 5, but the airline is still looking for FAA approval for its doors.
Aviation watchdog JonNYC reported a couple of days ago regarding two things related to this new aircraft (789P).
The first is about the number of flight attendants onboard these new planes. Currently, American operates its Boeing 787-9s with 9 flight attendants, which is one above the legal minimum.
JonNYC is reporting here that they’re trying to get the 789P certified for 7. My understanding is that they’ll schedule flights with 8 FAs, but will still have the flexibility to fly with 7 in the event that one cannot make the flight (Gary from View from the Wing also reported on this back in December).
The doors to the Flagship Suites are also awaiting FAA approval. The airline is still aiming to get them approved by June 5, but in the case that they can’t, the doors will stay locked open.
The seats themselves got FAA approval regarding accessibility just a few months ago, according to PaxexAero. American waited until November of last year to file its request for approval. I’m not sure why they waited that long considering these were first announced in September of 2022.
Hopefully it’ll be the same case for the doors, and they will be eligible for service next month. The inaugural flight will take place on the 5th from Chicago to Los Angeles (I will be there!), followed by the international inaugural flight from Chicago to London.
Featured image by American Airlines.
