American Airlines will begin operating its new B787-8 aircraft on its Chicago-Tokyo Narita route this summer.

The route is already heavily served by other carriers, including ANA, Japan Airlines and United, and the use of this particular aircraft means the loss of first class cabin, but the move could signify the airline’s intention to offer a superior experience at the expense of overall capacity.

The B787 features a two-class configuration with 28 seats in business class that are American’s latest flatbed seats, an improvement over the angled business class seats on the B777 that is currently operating this route. The aircraft also features 198 economy seats, of which 57 are Main Cabin Extra seats that offer better seat pitch than the standard economy seats.

American Airlines will launch the B787 on its Chicago-Tokyo Narita route on August 1, 2015. This will follow the aircraft’s deployment on its Dallas-Beijing service (June 2) and the Dallas-Shanghai route (June 26). www.aa.com