Introduction: Pandemic Trip to Costa Rica
Review: American Airlines CRJ-700 (First Class) – Oklahoma City to Dallas
Review: American Airlines 737-800 (First Class) – Dallas to San Jose, Costa Rica
Review: Marriott Costa Rica – Double Bed Suite
Review: VIP Lounge/Copa Club – Juan Santamaria International Airport
Review: American Airlines 737-800 (First Class) – San Jose, Costa Rica to Dallas
Review: American Airlines A321 (First Class) – Dallas to Oklahoma City
The trip to Costa Rica was originally planned for June but ongoing medical issues prevented us from taking the trip. The original plan was for three of us to fly out of OKC, while my other guy was flying from Tampa. I made the four hour drive from Abilene the night prior to the trip.
I purchased the round trip, business class itinerary for 66,500 AADvantage miles + $86 USD.
AA2984
OKC-DFW
Departure: 0800
Arrival: 0900
Seat 1A
Flight time 1hr 7min
October 6, 2021
The pandemic precautions were the same as my flight earlier in the year from Will Rogers Airport. We made our way through security within minutes due to free TSA PreCheck for military members. We arrived at the gate 30 minutes prior to boarding.
Boarding began on time at 0740. This was my first time flying in American Airlines CRJ-700, while I have flown in United Airlines CRJ-700 in first class, once. Two flight attendants were in the galley talking during boarding. One of them held out sanitizing wipes while saying “Wipe? Wipe?” to every passenger.
I turned right into the cabin and was at my seat, 1A. The seat was on the left side of the cabin, in a single row of three. There was a total of nine first class seats.
The seat had a permanent drink holder built into left armrest. The design was fine without a drink but kind of awkward with one. I made due by holding the drink in my left hand while I partaking. The one drink and short flight made this tolerable.
The gray table was stored in the same armrest as the drink holder. It could be used halved or whole. There was no need to use the tray table on this short flight.
There was not any individual air nozzles on the plane. The cabin was set to hella cold for the October morning.
There was no WiFi, power outlets, or seatback entertainment on the flight, which was kind of depressing.
Eight minutes after boarding, the flight attendant (one without the wipes) came around to ask for drink orders. With it being such a short flight, she informed us the drinks would be served immediately after takeoff. Being in 1A, I thought i would set the tone for the rest of the cabin so I ordered a vodka sprite. The other passengers all ordered water or nothing at all. Oof.
We pushed back from the gate 15 minutes or so behind schedule. A manual safety demonstration was performed during the taxi. After a five minute taxi, we had a rolling takeoff. The pilot announced our flight time of 37 minutes to Dallas.
The drinks were served 10 minutes later and nothing else happened for the duration. The cabin remained dim and the plane was eerily quiet. We landed in Dallas a few minutes ahead of schedule.
Final Word
The flight was a quick jaunt to start our Costa Rican vacation. I like that American Airlines operates numerous flights with first class availability to/from the Oklahoma City as opposed to a regional market as Abilene.
