American Airlines has made a lot of headlines for its premium new recliners on long-haul planes. Now, the airline plans to upgrade its smallest aircraft to its large cabin.
The Fort Worth-based airline announced Tuesday that it will begin revamping its regional jet fleet, the aircraft of the American Eagle brand aircraft, which will transport customers between smaller and medium-sized airports to the airline’s largest hub.
As part of the interior overhaul, the US-area jets will get a more modern cabin and have a fresh seating look. The most eye-catching change is the seat design, which will feature new, lighter blue seat coverings. The headrests are either tan (extra for first class and main cabin) or with tan stripes (for standard coaches). Each headrest is in the corner with the airline logo.
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First class in the redesigned American Eagle Regional Jet. Artuo Barbera/American Airlines
It’s a palette reminiscent of the palette that the United States debuted this summer on its all-new premium Boeing 787-9p, which features its latest flagship kit (the airline also plans this color scheme for its new Airbus A321XLR aircraft).
All regional jets in the U.S. are planned for cabin upgrades, including the Bombardier CRJ700 and CRJ900, as well as 170 and 175 aircraft.
Americans hope to complete these transformations “in the next few years.”
Better Wi-Fi and wider power sockets
It’s not just aesthetics. As part of the overhaul, Americans will install seated outlets on a wider area of their regional fleet, which should be a welcome change for passengers who need to charge their devices while flying.
Then there is the Wi-Fi issue.
Although the United States has been browsing on its regional aircraft for years, this is not the most reliable Wi-Fi service. But, as TPG reported earlier this year, Americans are upgrading the internet on board with their regional jets and can connect to the door more quickly.
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The airline announced on Tuesday that it has completed the installation of high-speed satellite Wi-Fi for nearly 300 U.S. Eagle aircraft. Americans expect that by early 2026, all regional jets with two cabins (first class and economy) will have more reliable connectivity.
It’s not accidental that in early 2026, the operator also plans to make machine Wi-Fi free on all aircraft of its Aadvantage loyalty members.
“Even in relatively short flights, our customers value keeping in the air connections, even in relatively short flights,” said Heather Garboden, chief customer officer of the U.S., in a statement Tuesday. “We have been working hard to ensure our regional fleet offers the best and most reliable high-speed connections, especially as we look forward to free Wi-Fi in 2026.”
Top trash bin
Finally, as part of this regional jet overhaul, Americans also said it is working to address the problems of these shorter-flying midstream platforms: those nasty small overhead bins. The airline is currently in talks with Brazilian planners to design a new, larger overhead bin with larger rolling bags.
Americans say it expects to launch aircraft with larger elevated bins in the coming years. This is not alone either. United Airlines has also installed more spacious overhead bins on many of its regional jets in recent years.
Regardless of the airline, the idea is to reduce the number of passengers who have to wait for luggage to mark their bags on the jet bridge after landing, a common pain point in operation in regional subsidiaries in the large airline area.
Bottom line
Generally speaking, regional jet experience tends to be more limited in terms of airborne technology and amenities, and regional flights for Americans are no exception.
But with newer Wi-Fi, updated cabins, and ultimately (ultimately) larger overhead bins, the airline hopes to close the gap between its smaller American Eagle aircraft and the larger Boeing 737s and Airbus A320-home jet fleet flying on other domestic routes.
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