Sitting in coach is going to be a little tighter in the near future. American Airlines has announced that it will reduce the space between rows in economy by 2 inches. According to reports, Americanโs new Boeing 737 MAX aircraft will reduce the pitch (the space between rows) from 31 inches to 29 inches on three rows in economy. All of the others will be reduced by 1 inch. The reduced space between rows will allow American to add 10 more seats in economy, going from 160 to 170. While other airlines such as United are considering similar changes, the new seat pitch now puts American behind Jetblue, Southwest and Alaska, all of which have between 31 and 33 inches between rows. In addition to the shorter rows, the bathrooms on the new aircraft are also expected to be smaller. The new aircraft is expected to go into service by the end of 2017.