The detail that saved this economy flight from Sydney to LA
It is a truth universally acknowledged that flying from Sydney to Los Angeles in economy class is awful, no matter what airline you’re travelling with.
I’ve done the route about six times so I consider myself a bit of an unwilling expert on this particular flight path.
An American Airlines Boeing 777-300er. iStock
After going there and back with American Airlines recently I can confirm it’s no better with them than any other airline – though, American at least offers plenty of free snacks, a popular amenity that isn’t always guaranteed.
But can free Tim Tams and orange juice really make up for 15 hours of midair misery? In my opinion, not really – especially when the plane looks like a rubbish tip at the end of the flight.
Before boarding
Like most airlines these days, American Airlines allows passengers to manage everything from seat selection to check in on the mobile app.
Flying from Sydney to Los Angeles is never fun, according to reporter Maddison Skipper. Supplied/Maddison Skipper
I found the app easy to navigate (even without an account) and used it to pre-book vegetarian meals, select my seat, and check in for my flight before I ever set foot inside an airport.
The app also advertised plenty of paid add-ons, from priority boarding for $USD25 ($35), to seats with extra legroom for up to $USD150 ($215), which was a bit depressing – mainly because I couldn’t afford them.
At the airport, it was a simple task of scanning the boarding pass on my phone, printing a bag tag and dropping my bag. Quick and easy, just how I like it.
American Airlines economy seats
The first thing I noticed when I arrived at seat 26C for my flight to Los Angeles was how low the back was. When I sat down, the height issue only became more obvious.
The American Airlines low seat backs had plenty of taller passengers looking disappointed. Supplied/Maddison Skipper
Standing at just 163cm, I am by no means a tall woman, but even I could tell American Airlines’ Boeing 777-300ER economy seats were incredibly short.
The headrest ended well below the top of my head and looking around the cabin, I could see plenty of taller passengers looking dismayed. The headrest ended at about mid-neck on several of them.
It was a tight fit even for a petite traveller like me on the American Airlines plane. Supplied/Maddison Skipper
Aside from the height, economy seats on my flight had a 78cm pitch (distance from the back of one chair to the next) and a width of between 41cm to 46cm, so they were a tight fit even for a petite traveller.
Padding on the seats was minimal, and I was grateful to have an aisle seat for the little bit of extra breathing room it offered.
The back of each seat featured a small entertainment screen with a pretty ancient looking remote attached. Even the earbuds the flight attendants handed out looked like relics of a bygone era.
The entertainment screen and cheap headphones left a lot to be desired on a 15-hour flight. Supplied/Maddison Skipper
The food
Airplane food is notoriously hit-and-miss, and it was no different on American Airlines.
I pre-booked the lacto-ovo vegetarian meal options (AKA vegetarian meals with dairy and eggs) to guarantee I’d get a meal I could actually eat.
It’s a good thing I did because the more popular meal option ran out by the time the service hit the middle of the cabin, forcing many travellers to make do with a meal they didn’t really want.
Though the food didn’t look particularly appetising, most of it was edible. Supplied/Maddison Skipper
The food itself was okay. Most of it was edible (bar the incredibly dense bread roll that tasted like it was still half-frozen) and the Chobani yoghurt and granola I was served for breakfast was downright tasty.
The one thing that really set American Airlines apart was its diverse and well-stocked snack bars that were open to passengers throughout the flight.
That overhead lighting really made this snack cache look like something that had been delivered by angels. Supplied/Maddison Skipper
Goldfish crackers, mini cookies, Tim Tams, pretzels, and more were stashed next to crates of soft drinks, cartons of juice and giant bottles of water in the galley and at the back of the cabin for anyone who fancied a snack.
These snack stations were the only bright point in my long, long, long daytime flight to Los Angeles. How sad is that?
The verdict
As mentioned (at length), flying from Sydney to Los Angeles sucks and there’s very little that can be done to change that – save, perhaps, upgrading to business or first class.
My actual flights to Los Angeles and back with American Airlines were not shockingly awful, but they weren’t particularly good either.
The plane was filthy by the end of the long flight but that’s nothing new for long haul travel. Supplied/Maddison Skipper
There were screaming babies, rude passengers who reclined their seats as soon as the meal service started, and a few flight attendants who clearly wanted to be on literally any other flight path.
The aircraft itself was covered in trash by the end of both flights and I did feel for me the customer service and attention to detail was lacking compared to some other carriers, like Air New Zealand, United, or even Qantas.
When direct round-trip flights from Sydney to Los Angeles start at just over $1000 with American Airlines, or just over $1200 with Qantas, I’d prefer to pay the extra $200 for better service and a very slightly bigger seat.
The writer travelled as a guest of Visit Huntington Beach.
