American revamped its amenity kits for their premium cabins in early 2019. I’ve already reviewed the Business Class and Premium Economy kits. Now here is a review of the American First Class amenity kit. American maintains a first class cabin on an Airbus 321 sub-fleet dedicated to transcontinental flying between JFK and LAX and SFO. They also have an 8 seat first class on 20 777-300ER planes used mostly for flights to HKG, LHR, and sometimes GRU and EZE. The kit below is available on long haul flights in First Class.
I have not flown American First Class long haul besides an op up in the old 777-200 configuration. I received these new kits to sample via a contact I have at Wessco who makes these kits for American and many other carriers. This is my review of the American Airlines First Class Amenity kit from This is Ground.
Welcome to another installment of our amenity kit review series. As in past reviews, I will be reviewing this amenity kit on a scale from 1 to 5 (being the best) and will rate it based on five categories:
- Bag/container: design, quality and reusability/collectibility of the bag.
- Product: quality, size and variety of the facial and body products.
- Comfort items: eye masks, ear plugs, etc.
- Miscellaneous: pens, tissues and everything else.
- Extras: additional items that make your flight just a tad more comfortable including pajamas, slippers, etc.
American First Class Amenity Kit
The promotional photo above shows some of the color combinations of the long-haul first class amenity kit. I’ve already discussed their release announcing these changes, and I received one of the off white zipper cases for this review. Like the business class kits, the containers are branded by This is Ground, and contain skincare products by Allies of Skin. This is Ground is a Los Angeles based company making leather goods for tech and travel. Allies of Skin is a Singapore based skincare company. Both companies have coupons in the kits for 20% off their products.
Bag/Container
There are several color combinations of the kit container that are available, as shown above. The bags differ slightly, some close with zippers, others have snap closures. While This is Ground typically makes leather products, I don’t think these kits are leather. It’s a decent vinyl, but thankfully doesn’t have an off-putting odor that some fake leather products do. There is a This is Ground logo on the outside, and inside is an American logo and other This is Ground logo embossed. These are pretty similar to the business class kits except for the loops to hold materials on the left side. Size is okay, and if you have products that it in the loops, it seems like it would be nicely functional for reuse, for toiletries or whatever else. Score: 4.
Product
This kit comes with hand lotion, facial moisturizer, lip balm, and mouthwash. Contents are identical to the business class kit with the addition of face lotion. These Allies of Skin products have a citrus scent and are nice, but just adding face lotion doesn’t really make this first class. Score: 3
Comfort Items
You’ll notice this is the same photo from my business class kit review. That is because the contents are identical. Very thin polyester socks that barely cover my ankles when pulled up. The eye mask has an elastic strap, and the only thing noteworthy about it is that it seems large, so probably would block out light well, which is the point. Score: 3
Miscellaneous Items
Travel toothbrush, and a 0.85 oz (i.e. not tiny) tube of Crest toothpaste. 3M 1100 earplugs are included as well, along with a small packet of tissues. Finally a single Mentos mint is provided. There is a pen, although it is Aviator branded for the co-brand credit card. There is also a small circle with a snap closure which is presumably to hold headphones or cables. Score: 3.5
Extras
First Class passengers receive excellent Casper bedding, including a day blanket, mattress pad, and a duvet. Casper pajamas and slippers are also provided, making for a very comfortable sleep experience in flight. Score: 4.5
Final thoughts on the American First Class Amenity kit
I haven’t reviewed previous versions of these kits before. The case seems like an improvement of what I’ve seen before, but the step from up from business class is really minor, only a breath mint, a cable holder, and some face lotion. Not what I would consider first class. Contents are nice enough, but there isn’t anything too fancy. The extra items including bedding, slippers and pajamas are nice, but otherwise nothing too special for first class. By averaging the scores, I rate this kit 3.6
Have you received a This is Ground kit on an American First Class flight? Please let us know what you think.
Other Amenity Kit Reviews
- Japan Airlines First Class
- ANA First Class
- British Airways First Class
- Virgin Atlantic Upper Class
- Qantas First Class
- Thai Airways First Class (Rimowa 2014)
- Japan Airlines Business Class
- Lufthansa First Class (Escada)
- Cathay Pacific Business Class (new Seventy-Eight Percent)
- United Airlines BusinessFirst (Cowshed Kit)
- United Airlines BusinessFirst
- American Airlines Transcon First Class (Reno Air Heritage Series)
- United Airlines BusinessFirst (new TEAM USA kit)
- Lufthansa Business Class (Bree)
- Etihad Business Class (LUXE)
- Qatar Airways Economy Class
- American Airlines Business Class (Cole Haan 2016)
- American Airlines Business Class (Cole Haan 2017)
- Austrian Airlines Business Class
- Delta One Domestic Tumi
- Air France La Premiére
- Qantas First Class Martin Grant
- American Airlines Business Class (Cole Haan 2018)
- Lufthansa Business Class (Reisenthel 2018)
- Swiss Business Class (Victorinox 2018)
- American Airlines Business Class (This is Ground 2019)
- American Airlines Premium Economy (STATE 2019)
