Once upon a time, travelers dressed up to get on a plane, sat in comfortable seats, were served a real meal — sometimes even with actual plates and silverware — and were pleasant to their fellow passengers.
If this sounds like as much of a fairy tale as frogs turning into princes and pumpkins turning into magic coaches, that’s because airlines have long been on a race to the bottom, with seats getting smaller, in-flight offerings getting slimmer, and fees for services getting bigger.
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American Airlines seemed to be changing course from this troubling trend lately, deciding that a “pivot to premium” was in order. The change comes as the airline has been lagging behind close competitors, including United and Delta, with American reporting a net income of $846 million in 2024, compared to $4.7 billion for Delta and $4.2 billion for United.
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However, space issues on its upcoming new Airbus A321XLR aircraft have caused the company to make a big compromise on service for flights, at least on this particular plane.
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Airline passengers will soon find a key staple missing
American is planning to add 50 Airbus A321XLR aircraft to its lineup within the next year. The narrow-body single-aisle jets are optimized for extended routes, opening up new opportunities for the carrier.
However, they also come with limited space in the galley where the crew prepares food, and that’s going to lead to compromises in terms of the services that the airline provides to passengers.
One of those compromises is the elimination of bread and butter in both premium and economy meals.
Now, bread and butter has, of course, long been a standard part of the meal offerings on long-haul flights — as well as a standard offering in many settings where you’re served a sit-down meal. However, American believes that eliminating it could be the solution to the space issues created by the use of the more economical single aisle jets.
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The airline has been careful to note that this is not a cost-cutting measure, but a choice driven by space constraints. Still, most passengers won’t know the motivation when they see their breadless dinners, and may view this as yet another example of an airline offering less than before.
American Airlines is testing how passengers feel about the change
While the elimination of this basic is bad news for those who want to make sure they’re full on long-haul flights, it’s not actually a done deal yet.
American wants to make sure customers don’t get too angry at the lack of bread and butter, particularly those who are paying a fortune to fly premium class, so the company is testing out the shift on some of its current flights before the policy becomes permanent.
Flyers on some of the airline’s existing wide-body aircraft who are taking long-distance flights will see their trays a little emptier as bread and butter have already disappeared. This includes flights departing from Boston (BOS), Charlotte (CLT), and Raleigh (RDU), and heading to London Heathrow (LHR).
Those flights were chosen because they are similar in length to the long-haul flights planned on the new Airbus planes that will lose access to the bread-and-butter portion of their meals.
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Passengers affected by the change on the test flights will be asked to share their opinions on a post-flight survey. The outcome of those surveys will shape whether the American follows through with removing bread and butter from its food offerings or whether the airline decides it’s going to have to find a new way to save space in the tight galley areas.
While this may seem like a minor issue, the reality is that service does matter, and American will have to carefully balance the desire to increase operational efficiency with the need to continue offering customers some semblance of a decent in-flight experience.
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Getting this balance right will be critical to bolstering its business and getting the full benefit of the flexibility these new aircraft offer.
