Best business class seats on American Airlines' Boeing 777-300ER

By Chris C., March 8 2016
Best business class seats on American Airlines' Boeing 777-300ER

American Airlines' Boeing 777-300ERs dart between Sydney and Los Angeles every day of the week, boasting fully-flat business class seats and direct aisle access for every premium passenger.

But as is often the case, some business class seats are better than others – we take a look at AA's business class cabin after a recent flight to LAX.

American Airlines Boeing 777-300ER business class

Spread across 13 rows, business class comes in a 1-2-1 layout: divided into a mini-cabin of two rows at the front, followed by galleys and toilets (not shown in the diagram), and the remainer of the seats just behind, followed by more toilets.

Our top picks of the bunch:

3A & 3J: Found at the front of the forward mini-cabin, these seats are your best bet for an uninterrupted flight – they're window seats on their lonesome so you have full control of the windowshades to set the mood for a day of work or a night of sleep, and their location means only the crew will pass your seat after take-off for added privacy.

They're also quieter during boarding with passengers in both business class and economy usually entering via the door behind row 4, so rather than having everybody walk past your seat as you would in the large cabin, you can turn left and settle down with a quiet glass of bubbly before wheels-up, or even get some work done.

The curtain in front of row 3 behind first class – usually mostly transparent for security reasons – also has an opaque panel that's deployed when passengers are sleeping, which means anyone in first class can't turn around and see you, and you won't be kept awake by passengers using overhead or reading lights in first class.

Finally, the lavatories behind row 4 are much larger than those down the back behind row 15, making for a quick walk and extra space to change into and out of your complimentary pyjamas.

(If Sheldon Cooper flew AA business class, this would certainly be 'his spot'!)

3D & 3G: For the same reasons above but for couples, colleagues or friends travelling together who want to chat mid-flight. If 3A & 3J are taken, you could also select 3D or 3G and simply raise the privacy divider between the seats to keep to yourself.

Row 10: Being in the centre of the main cabin, you're as far away from the restrooms as you can get before getting closer to another, so this is one to pick for lighter sleepers determined to get a good rest.

All other seats: Aside from the obvious choice of window seats for solo travellers and centre pairs for duos, the remaining seats are much the same – except for a few which you should avoid if you can.

AA Boeing 777 business class: seats to avoid

Row 5: The window seats here are actually missing a window which limits your view to the bulkhead wall in front and the aircraft wall to the side. There's also no curtain to block light from the galley and self-serve bar which can shine straight into your seat (particularly in those 'window' seats).

They're also the first business class seats that economy passengers spot when boarding the aircraft, making for what seems an endless stream of "these are nice", "wow, how much did people pay for these?" comments by passing passengers.

Finally, the lavatories are directly in front making for both noise and possible disruption from passengers queuing for them near or beside your seat.

Row 4: While offering a little extra privacy as part of the cosy two-row mini-cabin, the window seats are directly in front of the restrooms while the centre pair has a galley and self-service bar immediately behind, both of which have the potential for noise that can disrupt your train of thought or wake you during the night.

11A & 11J: The outer seats here have only one accessible window instead of two...

... and the window that is provided is at the far end of your suite where your feet normally rest...

... so while it can be opened to let some light in, you won't be able to see much.

Row 15: These seats are directly in front of the rear lavatories, which means not only noise from the restroom itself but also more passengers than usual walking past your seat to use the facilities, with some always with heavier footsteps than others.

Also read: AA Boeing 777 business class review: Sydney-Los Angeles

Follow Australian Business Traveller on Twitter – we're @AusBT

Chris C.

Chris is a a former contributor to Executive Traveller.

27 Jan 2015

Total posts 6

Flying SYD-LAX with AA in April and have just moved my seat to 3J. Looking forward to giving this a go. Have done lots of SYD-LAX and SYD-DFW with QF

British Airways Executive Club Gold

25 Jun 2015

Total posts 20

I've flown on AA's 77W 3 times before (JFK-LHR twice and MIA-LHR once), sat in 7A, 3A and 4G and I'd say that any seat in the mini-cabin is the place to be. When I was in 4G I wasn't disturbed by any noise from the galley, although that could've been due to my tiredness after a 12 hour layover in Miami which was preceded by an overnight flight from Sao Paulo.

The lavatory behind 4J is huge, the one behind 4A is pretty much your standard lavatory size.

American Airlines - AAdvantage

26 Nov 2015

Total posts 3

I'm a big fan of 3A & 3J but worth pointing out that they both lack a window. May also be worth reminding people, in case some of your readers take a AA 777-300 Business Class flight on a non-Oz route, that complimentary PJs are, at the moment only offered in business class on the US-Oz route.


Hi Guest, join in the discussion on Best business class seats on American Airlines' Boeing 777-300ER