Report No: 2020-1207
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Welcome to the second part of this series where I would be on another mileage-run, this time originating from the West Coast on another route other than DCA-RDU. To keep some mystery, I would reveal the routing part-by-part
The seventh report of this series would be the second wide-body report in this series but this time it would be on the American Airlines 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft onboard a flight from Dallas Fort Worth to Los Angeles. During my long layover at DFW, I also visited the American Airlines Admirals Club at DFW, the one near gate A24.
Here is the routing ( the remaining parts would be revealed soon )
Part 1:
Flight routing
- 1
- 2
Part 2:
Flight routing
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5AA 2424 Dallas Fort Worth to Los Angeles ( Domestic First ), Boeing 787-9, AA Admirals Club DFW A24
Part 3:
Flight routing
- 1
Loads for this flight
Domestic First: 100%
Main Cabin: 80-85%
DALLAS Fort Worth AIRPORT - DFW
After arriving from my previous flight at Terminal C, it was time to head to Terminal A for my next flight.
By the way, on this occasion, I decided to stay at the airport during my overnight rather than paying for a hotel on my own expense. There is also a Minute Suites location that was open at the airport that could be accessed through Priority Pass, although at that time, I didn't hold an active PP membership.
The FIDS were only showing the arrivals at the same calendar day. Nothing yet for the next day.
The connector between Terminal C and A was deserted.
Other than some other overnighters, there was almost nobody other than airport staff.
While walking, I decided to check if the aircraft that would take me to LAX was there.
Yes it was.
N820AL was waiting at the gate
Also I checked the information board at the Admirals Club and verified that it was going to open at 05:15.
Shortly later, I found an empty quiet seating area at the terminal and slept for a while. Until 04:00, the terminal was super quiet, however, when passengers on early morning flights started arriving, announcements had started to begun and the terminal started to get a bit noisy with social distancing reminder announcements every 5 minutes.
American Airlines ADMIRALS CLUB DFW A24 - DALLAS Fort Worth AIRPORT
When it was 05:15, I went back to the Admirals Club. Although, the club was scheduled to open at 05:15, it opened 5 minutes late to an issue with the door lock.
After checking in at the podium, I found myself a quiet corner.
FIDS at that time that doesn't show my flight yet. There is an earlier flight to LA but I preferred the 09:00 one to be on a wide-body rather than an A321neo with Project Kodiak seats.
The club also has a working area
With a photocopy machine
As it was early in the morning, the guac station didn't open yet, however, the breakfast buffet was set up.
The espresso machine was out of service but the issue was solved within minutes after I alerted one of the staff.
The bar was also open at the early morning hour.
Here is my initial selection
For 1-2 hours, I spent time on my laptop and then I decided to visit the buffet one more time. There were more passengers at that time compared to the early hour.
At that time the FIDS showed my flight.
Also American Airlines had an interesting machine, some of the food and non-alcoholic drinks for purchase was in this fridge and you simply paid your selection from the tablet and then grab it from the refrigerator.
At that time, the guac toast station was open so I opted for a guac toast and scrambled eggs from the station prepared by the chef.
Enter text here…
I also got another hot chocolate from the bar.
GATE AREA & BOARDING
A few minutes before boarding, I have left the club and headed downstairs.
Boarding had started on time with the respect of group numbers.
Fuselage shot
AA 2424 DALLAS Fort Worth AIRPORT TO Los Angeles AIRPORT
After being welcomed by the crew and being handed a snack bag, I headed to my seat 2A.
Here is a view of the seat console
The seat also has a screen equipped with the Panasonic ex3 IFE system.
As this aircraft was originally designed for international flights, the legroom was generous.
Here is the remote control
The seat control panel where you could adjust the position of your seat
The power outlet
Onboard literature
Today's route
Also I don't know what this means but my seat is actually a Class 3 Rest Facility.
Boarding had ended on time, however, in Economy Class, there were some passengers who have changed their seats to empty ones so the cabin crew did multiple announcements for passengers to take their assigned seats and then when those passengers didn't return to their original seats, an announcement like " Passenger X in seat AA, Passenger Y in seat BB; please identify yourself to the cabin crew". Shortly later, everyone took their assigned seats and we were on our way.
By the way, here is the snack bag content.
Biscoff cookies, a hand sanitizing wipe and a bottle of water
Our neighbor was this A319 that was heading to Richmond, VA that morning
Our gate
The overhead panel
While we were taxiing, the safety video was shown from the personal screens.
American Airlines A319 that was heading to Mexico City that morning
Some AA aircraft at one of the runway queues
Spirit aircraft at remote stands
An American Eagle E-175 taxiing to the runway for its flight to Durango as AA3318.
One of the runways were under maintenance
And the queue for the runway that we were going to take off
American Airlines 737-800
American Airlines A321
The aircraft behind us
After a 10-15 minute taxi and a wait for our turn at the runway, we were finally in the air
Some photos after takeoff
It's now time to browse the American Way magazine starting with the AA fleet
Airport maps which are covered in this series
American Airlines destinations within the USA
Entertainment options
Onboard this aircraft, personal device entertainment was not available and only paid Wi-Fi, free access to the AA website and some other sponsored websites were available
Weather information for LA
Reading the news articles on the system is also free
Shortly after takeoff, breakfast was served. Options for this flight was a turkey&swiss sandwich and a breakfast box. I've opted for the breakfast box option. As a drink, I asked for an apple&cranberry cocktail mix.
The breakfast box has yoghurt, blueberries and granola.
The yoghurt which was produced 11 months before the flight.
Content of the box
Route map at that time
Later on, I slept for the remainder of the flight until the seatbelt signs have been turned on.
At that time, I went to the lavatory to wash my face and hands.
Later on, I returned to my seat and realized that the window blinds were opened by the crew.
The first photo from LAX
We had landed on time at LAX
Some American Airlines aircraft near the AA Hangar
The Midfield Satellite Concourse that is scheduled to open soon
JAL 777-300ER at TBIT
American Airlines aircraft at Terminal 4
The JAL 777-300ER from another angle
And we were going to park next to this 787-9 which was going to head to DFW that morning.
We were going to park at gate 43 which is the gate where the mileage run part of this series have begun.
After we parked, there was an announcement regarding the online form requirement by the LA County for all arriving passengers. As this form is not flight specific but people specific, if you have arrived at LAX multiple times during this period, you don't need to refill the form.
After saying goodbye to the crew I have left the aircraft and took this photo of N820AL. Also at the podium, the gate agents were handing a printout of the QR codes for those passengers who haven't filled out the form yet.
At that time my mileage run had completed but I had 4 hours until another a flight which would be covered in Part 3 so I didn't leave the airport at LAX.
And I would end this report with a photo of two American Airlines 787-9 that is taken from the TBIT/Terminal 4 connector.
Stay tuned for the next part which would be published soon.
Thanks for reading and hope to see you in another report.
Hi ISTFlyer, thanks for sharing another interesting report! You win the prize for most pandemic-era flying ? haha
I took this same flight just a few weeks before you and had exactly the same meal, which is actually not bad compared to other carriers right now. My biggest take away was that I was really disappointed with what Admirals Clubs have become. No more vouchers for premium drinks for Elites/intl J pax and everything had to be paid, basically. I really miss Flagship Lounges !
Thanks for sharing !
Hi Kévin and thanks for stopping by,
- Tomorrow I'll fly my 68th and 69th flight since the pandemic has started and cheap flights encourage me to fly at this time. I hope the prices remain at a similar level so I could contribute FR more with more reports.
- For a 3h US domestic flight, this is actually the best breakfast that you could get alongside with UA's breakfast offerings. It's definitely better than DL F so I'll agree with your comment.
- We share the same feelings on this, I was really shocked when I heard that AA is no longer offering premium drinks, especially in June/July when they didn't offer anything other than water, coffee & tea and the fountain drink machines were closed due to the pandemic. At least, AA has stepped up and are now offering several spirits & digestives for free ( probably for club members not to cancel their membership ); however, if we return to food, I definitely miss the quality of the Flagship Lounge's and how great they were before an US domestic flight. I remember just choosing AA on some occasions for only Flagship Lounge's.
Thank you for your comment and hope to see you in another report.
Hi, thanks for supporting the airline industry with your numerous flights :p
This must have been a short and tiring night, thankfully you got a true full flat bed on this leg.
Catering is just a tad bit more generous but it's still a joke compared to the rest of the world for a 3+ hours flights.
With the rebounding of US trafic, I hope that empty airports and planes are a sign of the past!
Hi again and thanks for stopping by,
- Actually I didn't felt tired that night for a reason I don't know, however, the full flat bed made the difference on this flight. Initially I was offered to be rebooked on an A321neo flight 2 hours before this one but I purposefully chosen a longer layover to have the lie-flat seats.
- I definitely agree, all carriers in Europe have restored pre-COVID services or with an acceptable modification but in the USA, the norm is still like this. I've read that some US carriers are improving their service starting next month but that's mainly based on beverage rather than food.
- I actually enjoyed the empty airports and lower fares but as you mentioned, airports are getting more crowded each day in the states. I am not sure if I could find these fares for my mileage runs next year if I plan to do so.
Once again, thanks for your comment. Take care,