American Airlines begins business-class improvements

Josh Roberts believes the best trips involve long hikes and muddy boots. His life goals haven't changed much since he was a kid: He still wants to be Indiana Jones when he grows up.

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In addition to SmarterTravel, he has written for USA Today, The Boston Globe, Yahoo! Travel, The Huffington Post, Airfarewatchdog, TripAdvisor, Jetsetter, ABC News, Oyster, and Business Insider. His travel photography can be seen in Britain and Ireland's Best Wild Places, published by Penguin UK.

The Handy Item I Always Pack: "A lacrosse ball. It's small, lightweight, and works wonders on loosening up tight muscles."

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Aisle, Window, or Middle Seat: "Aisle."

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The AP (via The Miami Herald) reports that American Airlines has begun a major revamp of its business-class product, promising more comfortable seats and better in-flight entertainment options.

The move focuses on American’s long-haul jets. The airline says it is adding lie-flat seats and individual entertainment centers that it hopes will help it become more competitive with other carriers offering similar amenities. So far, American has only upgraded one plane, but it plans to make over the business cabins in all of its 58 Boeing 767s and 46 Boeing 777s over the next year.

American is actually coming rather late to the game, but is clearly trying to capitalize on a) long-haul international routes (in the face of extreme competition from low-cost lines on domestic routes), and b) the “return” of the business-class flyer.

Whether or not it can succeed when other U.S. legacy carriers are adopting a similar strategy remains to be seen. At least business-class travelers will be able to observe the airline battle from a comfy seat in the years ahead.

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