Doing a route I’ve had to have done about half a dozen times as of now, albeit not with this airline or this aircraft. Since November 2015, American Airlines’s 737-800 N915NN has been painted in the iconic Trans World Airlines “Twin Stripe” livery, returning the TWA name to the skies for the first time since 2001, when American acquired the ailing airline. While checking out FlightRadar24’s departures tab for LAX, I saw that this aircraft was going to Nashville and immediately put it on my agenda. After the long Star Alliance and SkyTeam series, I finally got around to it.
Server: Solo
Airline: American Airlines
Aircraft: Boeing 737-800 (TWA)
Origin: Los Angeles International Airport, Los Angeles, California (LAX)
Destination: Nashville International Airport, Nashville, Tennessee (BNA)
Flight Number: AA2730
Route: KLAX-KBNA
Seat: 4A (Domestic First)
Time En Route: 3 Hours 57 Minutes
Due to gate constraints at Terminal 4, some of American’s domestic flights are arriving and departing from the Tom Bradley International Terminal, with our flight to Nashville being one of them. Here, we’re waiting to board at Gate 159 while a Japan Airlines 787-9 taxis into the alley as JL62 from Tokyo-Narita.
Taxiing by a pretty full Terminal 7 on ourway to Runway 25L for takeoff. Our seat in American’s Domestic First is, as usual, pretty spacious and comfy, fairly similar to the airline’s premium economy seats on its 787 fleet.
Leaving L.A. We’re definitely going to miss this weather back east.
Climbout near San Pedro. In the background is the battleship USS Iowa (BB-61), preserved in the Port of Los Angeles as a museum ship.
In cruise at 37,000 feet, east of Phoenix. Captain says it should be a pretty smooth ride for thr first half of the flight; however, the seatbelt sign will remain on for the last couple hours or so.
Turning near Ardmore, Oklahoma. The local airport uses be a minor aircraft graveyard, with a number of ex-United Airlines 747-100s, 747SPs, DC-10s, and 727s being parted up there in the late 1990s/early 2000s.
In our initial descent over Jackson, Tennessee. The skies have been largely clouded up since Oklahoma, as the advance guard of an approaching winter storm.
Arriving in Music City on a cold afternoon on Runway 02R. We’re finally home! Or a home, at least.
Taxiing to Concourse C after crossing the bridge over Donelson Pike. A Southwest Airlines 737. A Southwest Airlines 737-700 departing to Sarasota, Florida, as WN 344 is taxiing out to 02R on the opposite bridge.
Parked and disembarked at Gate C15 while the Sun starts to go down in the west