By Shawn Gallagher
Hello, internet from Terminal B of Boston Logan Airport! I have a quick hop today with American Airlines to New York City. I’m flying First class on an Embraer 175 aircraft. Although the flight was a short 45 minute hop, there was a lot that went into it and American Airlines delivered a very smooth trip. Keep reading to see my experience.
Checking In My Bags
The check-in process was very smooth. Like seriously, ultra smooth. I checked in online but I had to drop off my bags. The self bag drop kiosk was easy to navigate and responds well. 2 checked bags are free for first class passengers, which is a plus for those with a lot of luggage.
First class and other priority passengers have a separate check-in section, which is where I went. There was no line there, but the regular check-in area had no line either. It was a quiet Saturday morning.
Related: Complete Guide To The American Airlines AAdvantage Loyalty Program
Terminal B at Logan Airport is pretty nice. It’s well built and modern, and they have a good amount of stores.
I like the old American Airlines logo displayed there too.
Here’s our aircraft for today. N430YX, an Embraer ERJ-175 delivered back in June 2014.
On The Plane
This was the seat. It’s a nice large seat with plenty of space.
I talked about this on X before this flight, but I do like the 1-2 configuration on the regional jets. The 2-2 configuration is more common as it’s used on the Boeing 737s and the Airbus A320 family, but it’s nice to have the single seat as an option on these planes.
Legroom was good enough for this short flight.
The plane boarded pretty quickly thanks to the small plane. We left the gate 5 minutes early, which is not something that happens a lot!
Check out the takeoff video I took here.
The seatbelt sign stayed on for a little while after takeoff. We had some patches of rougher air here and there. Service by the flight attendants began once it turned off.
We only had enough time for a quick drink service. I got some apple juice. Flight attendants also went around the first class cabin offering snacks.
I didn’t do much for the rest of the time, we made our approach soon after and landed at JFK.
Concluding Thoughts
We arrived about a half hour ahead of schedule. Props to American Airlines for this smooth flight.
This was a rather uneventful flight, but that’s sometimes what we all need. You do get the nice, bigger seats in First class, but being able to board and deplane first, and the free checked bags are in my opinion the biggest benefits. If you have a very tight connection you have to make, or if you have a lot of luggage, flying first class on a short flight might be worth it.
All photos taken by the author.