AIRLINE REVIEW: Comparing Delta, JetBlue & American Airlines, JFK-LAX

There are a lot of flight options when you're traveling between Los Angeles (LAX) and New York City (JFK). But they're not all created equal. 

During the course of three weeks, I flew three different airlines on this route: Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and JetBlue. I found that each provided a different experience, different comfort levels and different onboard amenities. Each airline had good aspects and not-so-good aspects. 

So which airline is the best choice for you on the transcontinental route? Well, it depends on your priorities — including your frequent flyer affiliation and accrual/status goals, as well as airfares and schedules. But there's more to it than that, since the inflight service and amenities vary on each airline on the LAX-JFK route. 

To make it easy to understand some of the differences between services on flights between New York and Los Angeles, I've put together my own little "mini awards" for the best features I found. 

I should note that my experiences are all in economy class. I do have elite status with American Airlines and Delta, but as usual I was sitting in the back of the plane. 

These ratings are based solely on my own personal experiences and are not scientific; your aircraft, amenities and experience may differ, of course. But these will still give you an idea of what to look out for. 

BEST PLANE: American Airlines Airbus A321 Transcon. Of the flights I took on the three airlines, the American A321 Transcon aircraft was the newest and  in the best overall shape. Everything worked on the plane, as far as I could see, and this aircraft type offered the largest amount of overhead storage, compared to the other planes I flew on this route on other airlines. 

American's A321 Transcon is configured specifically for this route, with a large percentage of first- and business-class seats and a relatively small economy section. It's also a single-aisle plane (which some people prefer, while others don't. The only airline I flew that offered wide-body service was Delta, which flew a 767-300ER on the route). 

BEST FOR WORKING ON BOARD: Delta Air Lines. Delta offers free WiFi for SkyMiles members. JetBlue offered free WiFi, but the connection wasn't consistent. American only provided a short connection for free, after which they charge a fee.

BEST FOOD & BEVERAGE SERVICE: American Airlines. Now this was a complete surprise: they served us an actual free meal in economy class! American Airlines gave us the option of a cheese plate, oatmeal or a "waffle box" on the morning flight, and then a second snack service with pretzels. 

Delta, meanwhile, offered two rounds of their snack service (with a choice of granola bars, Sun Chips, Biscoff and almonds). 

JetBlue offered free snacks during the first half of the flight (using what I call it's "three points of contact" system — the first cart arrives with food for purchase, followed later by a second cart with free and paid drinks, and then after that, a third cart with free snacks (pop chips, pretzels, plantain chips). Flight attendants appeared again during the second half of the flight with more beverages, but there was no second snack service. 

BEST AIRPORT TERMINAL: Delta Air Lines at LAX. This recently revamped terminal is glistening and refreshed … although the food and beverage options were limited.

BEST IN-FLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT: American Airlines, but only in comparison to its other flights. Unlike most American Airlines aircraft, the transcontinental model actually has seatback screens. The screen on one of my JetBlue flights didn't work at all. 

BEST EXTRAS: Delta Air Lines. Delta provided blankets and headsets on every seat in economy.