American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and United Airlines are known as the ‘big three’ US legacy carriers. While they have some similarities in their operations, they also have some contrasting approaches. One such difference is the use of single-aisle jets on long-haul flights.

American Airlines is preparing to make the Airbus A321XLR a crucial part of its transatlantic strategy. The airline and its pilots have been extensively training for the arrival of this type of aircraft, which is highly anticipated. On the other hand, Delta Air Lines is avoiding transatlantic flights on narrowbody jets due to ‘brand issues.

Delta’s main choice for transatlantic flights are widebody twinjets, such as the Airbus A330, A350, and Boeing 767. However, they do operate the 757 between Detroit (DTW) and Keflavik (KEF) seasonally. Looking at their future fleet, Delta has orders for Airbus A220s, A321neos, A350s, and Boeing 737 MAXs. However, only the A350s will be used for long-haul flights, as Delta’s President Glen Hauenstein explained in a recent earnings call. He stated that their narrowbodies are not suitable for transatlantic flights due to product and brand issues.

In contrast, American and United, both of whom are Delta’s main legacy rivals, have plans to use single-aisle jets for long-haul flights. United announced four new European routes last week, two of which will be operated by the Boeing 737 MAX 8. American Airlines, on the other hand, has 50 Airbus A321XLRs on order. Two of these have already been delivered, and the airline plans to base them in New York. JFK Airport is seen as an ideal transatlantic gateway for low-demand routes from the East Coast to secondary cities in Europe. American is addressing any potential brand issues by configuring the cabin with a low-density, premium-heavy setup.

The introduction of the Airbus A321XLR is a significant change for American Airlines, as their transatlantic operations are currently dominated by widebody jets. In preparation for this change, the airline is taking extensive measures to ensure their pilots are ready. They have been using one of their Airbus A321neos to train pilots for transatlantic flights. In September, American operated more than 20 empty round trips between Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) and Edinburgh (EDI) to familiarize pilots with flying narrowbody jets on longer flights. The airline also released a statement stating the purpose of this initiative was to highlight the unique aspects of transatlantic flying to their narrowbody pilots, such as the North Atlantic Tracks, non-radar ATC operations, satellite ATC communications, and the various diversion airports that may need to be used.