Airline Service

Qantas and BA halve London-Australia direct capacity

2011-08-16T16:28:00.000Z

Today's announcement from Qantas is ominous for those who like having a choice of through services between London and Sydney or Melbourne on Qantas and British Airways.

At present there are four direct one-stop Qantas/BA services between London and Sydney, and two direct one-stop Qantas services between London and Melbourne.

The London-Sydney route is operated via Singapore and Bangkok, with Qantas and BA each flying a service through each airport. The Singapore route has Qantas operating an A380, with BA operating a 777-200ER. The Bangkok route has Qantas and BA both operating 747s.

The London-Melbourne route is operated via Singapore and Hong Kong, with Qantas operating an A380 via Singapore, and a three-class 747 service via Hong Kong.

The changes will see:

- The termination of through London-Bangkok-Sydney services by both Qantas and BA, although Qantas will maintain a Bangkok-Sydney service, and BA a London-Bangkok service, these will connect, so whilst passengers can still travel Qantas/BA via Bangkok, they will not get the same airline the whole way.

- The termination of through London-Hong Kong-Melbourne services, although again Qantas will maintain a Hong Kong-Melbourne service, and BA its frequent London-Hong Kong service (increasing in frequency).

- The single remaining BA service to Australia (LHR-SIN-SYD) will be upgauged to a 747.

- The two remaining Qantas services to London will both be full time four-class A380s via Singapore.

- Qantas will install a new First Class lounge at both Singapore and Hong Kong airports.

Effectively with Qantas cutting two daily flights to London and BA one to Sydney, it is a halving of the current six daily to three daily. Qantas will obviously try to avoid concerning frequent flyers by still selling tickets London-Bangkok-Sydney as a codeshare, and the same London-Hong Kong-Melbourne and Sydney. Yet it has implications for different classes of travel:

First Class: Both Qantas and BA have new First Class products, but these will only be available for sure on the direct routes. The indirect routes may or may not have first class cabins on the Qantas side, as Qantas has said it is removing First Class on all aircraft except A380s. This would appear to be a reduction in first class capacity on the Kangaroo route.

Business Class: Both the Qantas A380 and BA have lie flat seating in Business, but will the Bangkok/Hong Kong services by Qantas have the fully lie flat Skybeds that are on the A380s? Qantas has announced a refurbishment of some 747s to install this, but it appear they are intended for routes to the Americas. The lack of fully lie flat products on connecting services would be a negative. It may also be considered a negative for passengers to have considerably different products between BA and Qantas.

Premium Economy: Qantas is generally considered to have the superior product because of newer seating and having a distinctive catering offering, unlike BA which has economy class service in its World Traveller Plus cabin. This means connecting services will be different for passengers. Although it may be expected that BA's refurbished World Traveller Plus cabin might be made available on the route, it will still be inferior soft product to Qantas.

Economy: Little real difference should be noticed here as the airlines have broadly similar products.

It is obvious that by cutting the second leg of three daily flights, the airlines can save a lot of capacity. Qantas can make four aircraft available (as it takes three aircraft to maintain a daily service between Australia and London), BA will have two free (although one will be used to boost London-Hong Kong). The cost savings in capital, and in staffing will be considerable, and in an age when they compete with state owned airlines with bottomless pits, low tax structures and far more flexible labour conditions, they need to make such savings.

Yet it will mean both are a shadow of their current selfs at both ends. BA once flew to multiple Australian airports, and will be down to one daily flight - like its chief rival Virgin Atlantic. Qantas with its current four daily flights, sees Heathrow inundated with three A380s/747s at once. It will be down to half of that, only slightly more than Air NZ (which is double daily four days a week), from a country with a sixth of the population.

However, if you only have 18% of the outbound international market from your home country, you do need help, especially since the once lucrative Pacific route (where it was only Qantas and United a couple of years ago) now has two new competitors.

American Airlines in 2011 : it's ok...

2011-06-11T21:08:00.000Z

With the formal alliance between BA and American Airlines now allowing codesharing and reciprocality in frequent flyer points, it is now more attractive than ever before for UK based flyers to choose AA. Of course, other OneWorld frequent flyers have long had AA as their option for flying in North America.

Its major upgrade as of late has been improvements to its lounges at Heathrow Terminal 3, but its on board product has been unchanged for sometime. Its long-haul business class is still touted as “new” although it was launched in 2006. Its long haul products are not extraordinary.

The First Class Flagship Suite is a fully flat bed, but with a small entertainment screen that is not competitive.

Business Class is an angled lie flat seat, adequate (and was chosen to maintain seat numbers so AA could still offer enough upgrades to frequent flyers) but increasingly less competitive, not just with Asian and British carriers, but even US ones like United/Continental and Delta. Entertainment only on the longhaul Boeing 777s includes an on-demand system.

In short, it is about time AA got a refresh, at least for economy and first in long haul, and be planning when it should have business class that is competitive.

So what is there?

Long Haul First Class:

A flash presentation of both long haul first and business classes

Business Class

Focus on angled-lie flat business class

Economy Class

Wifi on domestic US flights

Premium dining on long haul flights

Flagship lounges and Arrival Lounge at London Heathrow

Lounges at London Heathrow

2011 - what will it bring?

2011-01-02T18:58:00.000Z

Happy New Year all. To start the year off, I thought I'd summarise what I think will be the highlights and themes for the airline industry, in terms of customer experience, for 2011. These are not centred on any particular markets, but trends I am observing more widely, plus events to be watched.

Connectivity: Internet access, live news and other broadcasts (e.g. sport), email, SMS and phone calls are going to be the order of the day. Whether it is driven by domestic business travellers (US) or long haul, the big issues are going to be managing bandwidth, regulating content (e.g. how many don't want to be sitting beside someone accessing adult content) and most of all the nuisance aspect of mobile phone use in the air. Let's hope security also does not become a problem.

Low cost airlines chase premium traffic: It is already seen now with Air Berlin becoming a full service carrier, Virgin Blue with premium economy and lounge access, and Easyjet offering fully flexible fares. As business travel re-emerges, but low cost leisure travel remains flat, the low cost airlines will see more potential in taking on full service carriers where viable. Watch Aer Lingus pursue premium traffic as it joins a major alliance, again.

Low cost long haul finds a niche: Low cost long haul airlines have come and gone before, but Air Asia X may have found a model for niche players. Flying from secondary hubs to secondary hubs. It requires a very low cost base, but also a competitive premium product offering business class seating at premium economy prices. Jetstar is adopting a similar model to replace Qantas on lower yielding routes, but don't expect it to take off under the current market environment.

Mergers and alliances continue: Following United/Continental, it looks like others from SAS to Virgin Atlantic are next for full takeover. Expect more alliance membership from Asia, Africa and Latin America. Lone full service carriers have a more limited future outside the Gulf carriers, but also watch airline alliances change on the edges, as carriers start switching. Some of the most intense competition between carriers is within alliances.

Boeing 787: The first majority composite airliner, which for passengers will herald in flights with higher humidity, higher air pressure and bigger windows. ANA should have put the first into service by the end of year (fingers crossed), and if passengers really do notice the difference, it will be a noticeable step up in long haul flight comfort. However, for airlines they will care far more whether Boeing can address rather serious weight and range issues.

Cuddle Class: Air NZ's revolutionary new "flat bed" in economy class on its new Boeing 777-300ERs will be launched on the Auckland-Los Angeles route in the next month or so. If successful, expect Air NZ to expand it on its long haul fleet and for others to follow. It might work for couples winning to spoon, or families, but most importantly it is the biggest leap forward in economy since personal TVs. As a side note, expect Air NZ's introduction of freshly cooked food to see in flight catering become a new attraction, if successful.

Premium Economy grows and improves: Whilst established for some years in the UK and Japan, it has more recently been successful for Qantas, Air NZ, SAS and Air France. Expect more European and Asian airlines to adopt it as a way of winning long haul premium leisure customers, and business customers knocked back by travel budget cuts, as well as being able to plug the gap between cattle class and flat bed business class and be a step ahead of the Gulf carriers (none of which offer it). Carriers in the Americas are most likely to fear it will cannibalise business class. Premium economy will get better catering, more recline, more legroom, more privacy and will look a lot like business class did 20 years ago...

First Class continues to disappear from more and more routes: Quite a few carriers have upgraded First Class, whilst dropping the routes which carry it. Beyond the vanity factor for some carriers, first class as a product has to provide outstanding privacy, catering and ground service to compete with the best fully flat business classes. However, few routes have enough very high yield travellers who demand this privacy. Even the Beckhams are known to use Air NZ Business Premier between LA and London. In other words, business class is looking in many ways a lot like first class did 10 years ago.

Fuel efficiency above all else: Oil prices will keep slipping skywards, putting more pressure on new engine technology and for the composite fuselage aircraft to deliver. The Airbus A320 NEO will put pressure on Boeing to decide on its next project once the 787 programme is bedded down, it will be driven by whether it thinks it can get more of a fuel efficiency advantage from updating/replacing the 737 or the 777 first. However, don't expect Boeing to move fast whilst it want to make the 787-9 work and launch the 787-10. Airbus will seek to make the A350 the 777 killer, meanwhile the A340 and the 747 will both be a bit less common as both are replaced by more fuel efficient alternatives.

Finally, Boeing 747-8i appears in service: Boeing's final version of the 747, for passenger service, has had very limited interest (with only Lufthansa, Korean and a handful of VIP orders). However, the proof will be in the flying. Lufthansa is expected to launch its fully lie flat business class on this aircraft, which isn't extraordinary in itself (more "about time" really), but the bigger proof will be whether Boeing can meet and exceed expectations of fuel efficiency and overall performance. If it goes well, it might just pick up a few more orders, which are desperately needed.

Thai to completely refurbish fleet by 2017

2010-12-28T14:15:00.000Z

As reported before on this blog, Thai Airways has announced new seating for economy, business and first classes that will appear on all new Airbus A330s and the Airbus A380s when they arrive, and will be retrofitted on existing A330s. However, Flightglobal has reported that up to 12 of Thai's Boeing 747-400s will also be retrofitted with the new products over the next three years, with 8 Boeing 777-200s to get new in flight entertainment systems (although not apparently new seats). However from 2012 to 2017 Boeing 777-200ERs and Airbus A340s will get new products (which is a very long period to retrofit, as well as seemingly reversing the assumption that the A340s are to be disposed of).

As I said before, the new first and business class offerings are to be welcomed, although tightening up the seat pitch in economy is a big step backwards. However, most concerning must be the incongruity of Thai's aim to compete with the likes of Emirates, Etihad, Singapore Airlines, Malaysian and Cathay, but taking 7 years to get its product up to spec across its fleet. Thai should be aiming to have its long haul fleet converted as a priority by 2013 with medium haul by 2015.

Its current image is of a carrier that is relatively cheap, is below the standards of the airlines it seeks to compete with, but has good in flight service. The main disadvantage of Thai is inconsistency. No personal in flight entertainment screens in economy class is a big disadvantage when almost all other carriers have them. However at the premium end, passengers can't be sure to get fully flat beds in first class or even angled lie flat seats in business class. Consistency is all, then Thai can focus on those little touches it can easily do, like service, catering and good lounges at Bangkok, to make a difference.

However, until I know what I am getting, Thai will always be a matter of "it's good if it is cheap, but if it is the same price as others..."

Meanwhile Thai has announced it is recommencing daily direct flights between Bangkok and Auckland with its Boeing 777-200ER aircraft.

Air NZ receives first new Boeing 777-300ER with new long haul product

2010-12-24T16:22:00.000Z

Air NZ's first new Boeing 777-300ERs, intended to replace its Boeing 747-400 fleet, has arrived equipped with its new long haul product.

Air NZ's first Boeing 777-300ER

The term "cuddle class" has been unofficially coined for Air New Zealand's new economy class offering, which promises to be the most revolutionary change to economy class since personal in flight entertainment screens.

Sample of Air NZ's new premium economy and economy seats

Details about the new products were outlined on this blog before with the key points being:

- The front Economy Class cabin having the window portions of rows convertible into SkyCouch, with three seats convertible into a bunk/sofa across the width of the seats;

- A general upgrade of Economy Class seating, except for squeezing in a 10th seat into the 777 making the seats less than an inch narrower than on existing 747s and 777s;

- Premium Economy in a 2-2-2 configuration in new private hard shell seats;

- A refresh of Business Premier with a softer mattress side; and

- Induction ovens to enable fresh food to be prepared.

The new Boeing 777-300ER will initially fly only on routes between Auckland and Melbourne and Brisbane for staff training and trials. The SkyCouch wont be sold, neither will Premium Economy, although Air NZ frequent flyers with status in economy class may be upgraded to the new cabin at the time.   From mid January it will be introduced on the Auckland-Los Angeles route (NZ6/NZ5) although it will not be guaranteed until February when the second aircraft arrives. From 1 April the third aircraft will allow deployment on the Auckland-Los Angeles-London Heathrow route (NZ2/NZ1).

Images of the interior are now available and it shows a fair bit of attention to detail. Airline Reporter has an excellent collection here, with highlights being:
- Fully made up Skycouch;
- Another view of Skycouch with pillows, blanket and underlay;
- New Economy Class cabin looking forward, Skycouches on the side sections;
- Another view of new Economy Class cabin;
- New Premium Economy cabin looking back;
- Another view of new Premium Economy cabin;
- New Premium Economy seat;
- New Business Premier in sleep configuration;
- New Business Premier in seat configuration;
- New Business Premier cabin looking forward;
- New Business Premier amenity kit and table;
- New Business Premier cabin looking back.

Business Traveller also has an excellent Facebook photo album of the product development.

My view is that Skycouch is a revolutionary leap forward for couples or a parent with child travelling together who want to sleep. It takes what some economy class passenger enjoy when flights are empty, a flat surface of several seats, and expands on it to guarantee it, by selling three seats for the price of 2.5. That alone should be a revolutionary change for passengers in the back, and I wonder in particular, how popular it will be on the highly competitive Los Angeles-London route.

The rest of economy class passengers will have seats that have been redesigned with new headrests, pillows to slip over the headrests, fully retractable armrests, larger in flight entertainment screens (to the same size as business premier today) and the ability to order drinks and snacks on demand.   Pitch will be a compromise between the 747's 34" and the 32" on the existing 777s, at 33", but sadly seat width is being compromised to a tight 17", less than an inch narrower than existing seats (although as important, aisles are getting substantially tighter). You see going 3-4-3 in a 777 is tight, and a step backwards compared to many airlines such as Singapore, Cathay and BA.   Still the proof will be in the trying.

The new Premium Economy seats are a leap forward, offering unprecedented privacy in this class, with the centre seats allowing people travelling together to share a table and face each other to eat. The side seats offering particularly higher levels of privacy facing outwards towards windows. The 36" seat pitch can't be the measure of legroom, as the staggered layout provides significantly more. Also to be noted is the generous 2-2-2 configuration in terms of width, which is reportedly at 20", as much as some business classes. The 9" recline is the same at present, but as with economy, the proof as to the comfort will be in trying it.   Again, enhanced entertainment screens and catering (with properly cooked food) should add to the experience. I expect this will have to easily claim the title as the best premium economy class in the world today.

Business Premier is an upgauge of the current product. Whilst I'll enjoy softer surfaces and small enhancements, the big change is fully on demand eating, with fully cooked food as well as fresh toast and eggs.   For me the one thing that Business Premier will lack is the ambience of the nose cabin on the 747 or the front of the upper deck, but that is what happens when 777s replace 747s.   I expect the improved seat and the vastly improved catering will keep Air NZ as one of my favourites in business class.

Air France's lousy update of business class

2010-12-22T13:12:00.000Z

Air France has launched a new business class (L'Espace Affaires) seat on its latest Boeing 777-300ER aircraft. The publicity material indicates the following improvements on the existing seats:

- New integrated fixed footrest;

- New relaxation positions allowed for takeoff and landing with footrest extended;

- Softer headrest;

- More storage;

- Easier to use seat controls;

- Longer structure (over two metres in length) and now 61cm width;

- New 15 inch 16:9 ratio inflight entertainment screen (which also launches a new AVOD entertainment system with USB interface);

- Improved hard shell design with more privacy;

- Multi-standard power sockets.

Air France new business class in full sleep mode

The video is here showing the layout of the new business class on the 777.

All very nice right? Well, except for one point. It remains an angled lie flat seat.

When will Air France catch up with its competitors? With US carriers such as United/Continental and Delta moving towards fully lie flat business class, fully lie flat now being rolled out among the big Gulf carriers like Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways, fully lie flat on Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific, let alone the likes of British Airways, does Air France think this remains competitive? Is the soft product that much better? I don't think so.

Admittedly, continental European airlines have been slow in moving to fully lie flat seats in business class, but today Iberia, Swiss, Finnair and even Alitalia have either fully or partly rolled out fully lie flat in business class. Is it that Air France has the French-based premium traffic so well sewn up in terms of corporate contracts that it can continue to be sub-standard in business class seating?

The aircraft to be retrofitted includes the 777 fleet (those with business class), Airbus A380s and A330s. Airbus A340s are not to be retrofitted, nor are Boeing 747s (the latter are due to be replaced with A380s).

So a nice upgrade, but Air France still can't be said to be up to the standards of many of its competitors. Will it take Lufthansa (which also has an angled lie-flat product) to go fully lie flat for Air France to do so? Will it take a lot more of Air France's customers to choose competing airlines?

Air France has a reasonable soft product, reasonable lounges, including an arrivals lounge at Charles de Gaulle Airport, but if business class for you is about getting a good night's sleep, then you might be looking at other choices.

Thai to make 2 steps forward and 1 step backward with new products

2010-12-08T19:16:00.004Z

Business Traveller reports that the Bangkok Post has published an article showing Thai Airways is planning a complete revamp of its aircraft cabins. Thai has been notorious for inconsistency in products to the extent that it has used older 747 aircraft on some routes and selling old first class seats as business class and old business class seats as premium economy! As passengers have often not had certainty about products or aircraft, premium travellers have not rated its First Class and Business Class highly as a result. Even when there is some consistency (e.g. London Heathrow-Bangkok) some aspects of Thai's product remain lacklustre (e.g. no personal IFE screens in economy class).

Thai claims it will address this inconsistency, which is in part because it has a very diverse fleet. Beyond that the judgment is very mixed. Thai seeks to be up with the likes of Singapore Airlines, Emirates and Cathay Pacific, and to be fair its soft product and on board service standards are good. Its Bangkok hub has reasonable lounges (although the airport itself is an uninspiring concrete mass).

The new products will include AVOD for every class with screens ranging from 10" in economy to 23" in first. Thai also intends to offer internet connectivity and mobile phone access for premium customers (the latter being a reason to avoid the airline in my view - last thing i want in business class overnight from London are to hear ringtones, beeps and loud conversations).

How about the seats? My verdict is mixed.

Well the image from Bangkok Post appears to depict the new First Class, which looks identical to the new Korean Air product, with mini-suites and 23" inch wide fully lie flat seats. This looks a winner, and also parallels the latest product from Swiss.

Business Class (which is currently ranges from angled lie flat seats to recliners) is to be fully lie flat, minimum 20" wide with added privacy. The new seat is shown below and described by Bangkok Post as a toned down version of the newest Emirates product, which would appear to be quite an improvement. Regional aircraft will have recliners replaced with angled lie flat seats, which probably means the existing long haul product (which is competitive for flights of up to 6 hours given Singapore Airlines's new A330s which have such a product in Business).

Thai concept for new fully flat Business Class

There is no mention of premium economy, which admittedly is only available on certain routes at the moment (again variable product), but economy class is a major step backwards as Thai surrenders its best in class 34" seat pitch for 31-32". In other words it is certainly joining Singapore, Cathay and Emirates with tight seat pitch, but is losing one of its competitive advantages - legroom! I'd argue that it could sell itself as the roomiest economy class on almost all of the routes it services, so this is NOT a winner (although most economy travellers are driven by price).

The other issue is how long it is going to take to do the retrofit. The new products will be available on Thai's Airbus A380s (which will replace the old configuration Boeing 747s) and new A330-300s (which are replacing Airbus A300s). The A380s will replace 747s on the London, Paris and Frankfurt routes so will mean some key premium routes will have new product. Beyond that who knows?

The Bangkok Post article indicates the retrofit programme could last to 2023, which is clearly absurd.

Thai's A300 and A340 fleets' days are clearly numbered, but it has 20 of its own 777s and another 11 on order (excluding those leased from Jet Airways and Air India). They are the backbone of a significant number of lower density routes including routes to various Australian airports and New Zealand. However, it is assumed the combination of A380s and 777-300ER aircraft spells the eventual end of the 747 fleet, although Business Standard indicated the 747 fleet will be refurbished.

Setting aside economy class (!), it is important that Thai makes it clear what its retrofit schedule is and it should not be longer than 2 years. Anymore than that and any publicity about new products is heavily devalued every time a passenger finds him or herself on an aircraft with old (or even elderly) products.

So good for Thai for acknowledging product consistency is an issue and for upgrading its first class product and going fully flat in business, but brickbats for making economy class tight and narrow and for not making it clear what is happening to the rest of its fleet. This goes some way to raising Thai up to the standards of the best Asian hub airlines and its competitors from the Persian Gulf, Europe and Australasia, but what prospective passengers want is certainty and a relatively quick rollout of new products (with a priority given to replacing the products that last were seen elsewhere in the 1990s).

Continental Airlines progress on fully lie flat business class install

2010-12-08T17:59:00.002Z

Flightglobal reports that Continental Airlines has completed its installation of fully lie flat business-first seats in its 777 fleet. This will be welcome, as the airline appears to have the best business class product of any North American airline, and also brings it closer in line to United (which is, after all, the same airline) which has fully installed its entire 747 and 767 fleet (but still only partially installed the 777 fleet). Continental's website claims the 757 fleet have 68% installation (in a 2-2 configuration with 23" seat width but 58" pitch). A seat map of the 757 is here. Continental has earlier claimed that all flights to London Heathrow are with aircraft equipped with the fully lie flat seats. However, it is important to note that none of the Boeing 767-400ERs are equipped with the lie flat seats, but rather fairly old fashioned recliners seen here. As can be seen below, they are rather impressive seats, all facing forward, with adequate width and privacy. They remind me of what the American Airline ones might be like, if they had more pitch and went fully flat.

Continental BusinessFirst fully lie flat seats.

The full description of these seats is here. They are 6'6" (198cm) long, 22" wide and 60" pitch between rows, and in the 777 are in a 2-2-2 forward facing configuration as seen here in this seat map.

The previous product varied considerably. The old 757 recliners that are being replaced are depicted here. The 777s had an angled almost flat type of seat still depicted on the Continental website.

For some time US carriers have always been seen as well behind Europe, Asia and Australasia in having the best hard product, but of those carriers Continental has been highly rated on soft product. Continental's new seats make it more competitive than most continental European carriers (only Swiss, Iberia and Finnair have fully lie flat products outside the UK). It is a chance for Continental to ensure its entire experience makes it a serious rival for non-US carriers. The question is whether the merged United/Continental can meet those standard or whether the haphazard soft product of United will win the day.

Continental says by July 2011 all of its 757s will be equipped with the new seats, but it will be July 2012 by the time the 767 fleet is fully equipped.

By contrast, United only has 6 out of 46 777s equipped with its new lie flat business class. To be fair to United, its Suite Dreams website does indicate exactly all flights and routes that are equipped.

Blue 1 introduces business class

2010-12-08T17:07:00.002Z

Finnish based subsidiary of SAS, Blue 1, is introducing a short haul business class product showing once again that the European airline sector is moving full circle into upgrading service standards on board flights.

Blue 1 Premium replaces the Economy Extra product and includes the usual premium checkin, fast track security, lounge access, full hot meal and bar service, with fully flexible tickets. It claims to be up to 30% cheaper than competitors and has first been rolled out on services to London using the newly acquired refurbished Boeing 717s (the replacement to the MD80).

Seating is 3-2 in both economy and Premium, although it is unclear if the middle seat of the 3 will be blanked out as is standard in competing European business classes.

Blue1's main competitor is Finnair and so is clearly aiming at gaining more high yield business travellers.

Cathay Pacific launches new long haul business class four years after last one

2010-12-07T20:02:00.003Z

In October 2006 Cathay Pacific launched a major upgrade of first, business and economy classes, the details of which were published on this blog. Today Cathay Pacific launched a new business class only. The reason? A strategic mistake in 2006 that saw it take the cheap option in moving to fully lie flat seats.

The new first class has been widely acclaimed and is still seen to have been a success. It is a big seat with enough room for a guest which folds down to a bed. There is little good reason to change this and Cathay's high yield First Class business seems assured.

The economy class has been revolutionary in having fixed frames which the seats slid forward within for recline. The benefit was meant to be that passengers would not face seats reclining into their faces, but there were many reports of discomfort and cramped conditions. Not exactly a success, but economy passengers are mostly price sensitive.

The business class has been a bit of a flop. The intention was to catch up with the likes of Singapore Airlines and British Airways in replacing the angled lie flat seats with a fully lie flat seat. What was chosen was an option that is a version of the herringbone seats seen on Virgin Atlantic and Air New Zealand, yet there were two crucial differences. First the Cathay version reclined into a fully lie flat bed, whereas the Virgin/Air NZ version flipped over into a flat bed surface. Secondly, and more importantly it is a lot narrower. The Cathay seats are 20" wide, the Virgin and Air NZ ones are 22" wide. The Virgin and Air NZ ones are considered a success and widely acclaimed, the Cathay ones have been compared to coffins and claustrophobic.

Enough anecdotal reports of the Cathay product, compared to the competition, kept some business class travel from Cathay, which otherwise has excellent ground product and soft product. From London, for example, BA, Virgin and Air NZ all offer fully lie flat seats. Singapore Airlines and now Qantas (A380 only) both have better products for the Kangaroo route as well. So Cathay listened and has come up with this:


Cathay Pacific New Business Class

The press release states that it has both privacy and openness. The configuration is 1-2-1 for Boeing 777-300ERs and Airbus A330-300s for long haul routes. Key features listed are:

- Added storage, including a Side Cabinet that doubles as privacy screen with vanity mirror;

- Side seats are outward facing towards windows;

- All seats continue to have direct aisle access.

However, the best to judge is to see it. This PDF file from Cathay compares all of the dimensions of the current seats with the new ones.

Business Traveller also has some excellent photos on its Flickr site. It also notes no announcement yet of a rumoured premium economy class for Cathay.

It is notable that Cathay has not announced that it is retrofitting either the Airbus A340s or the Boeing 747s with the new seats. The A340s can be expected to be replaced by 777s and A350s in due course, but the 747s are the workhorses of key routes such as London-Hong Kong. Cathay has not ordered replacements for these aircraft as of yet, nor indicated that it is in a hurry to do so. Maybe it will be announcing a retrofit once it has made decisions on premium economy, or perhaps there are issues with sacrificing the number of seats on 747s given the configuration must be 1-2-1 in a rather wider cabin than exists on A330s and 777s.

The Wing lounge at Hong Kong is also to be refurbished, and added to Hong Kong hub is the new Cabin lounge, of which few details have been announced. Also launched is a new uniform.

UPDATE: Australian Business Traveller has perhaps the best write up about it.

Korean Air's A380s will have the least seats of all

2010-12-05T14:08:00.001Z

Korean Air Airbus A380 artist's depiction

With Singapore Airlines, Emirates, Qantas, Air France and Lufthansa all operating Airbus A380s (and despite the debacle of RR engines on the Qantas A380s), the next airline to start flying A380s in service will be Korean Air, which has ordered 10 of the type. The aircraft will operate routes from Seoul to the US and Europe from August 2011, with some short haul training services in the interim.

Korean Air has worked hard in recent years to improve its reputation both for inflight service and safety, and it will be taking things further with its recent announcement that its A380s will have the lowest number of seats of any A380s in service to date - 400 to 450 seats. What this should mean is more space, on average, for all passengers compared to others with A380s. Qantas at present has the lowest seating density on A380s with 450 passengers in a four class configuration. Korean Air will have a three class configuration, so it is better comparing with other A380 operators with similar configurations. Of those Singapore Airlines has 471 passengers.

Korean's on board product will include its latest first, business and economy class products as follows. It has graphic displays of the first and business products on its website here.

Korean Air, Kosmo Suite First Class

First Class is the Kosmo Suite, a 79inch long, 26.5 inch wide seat that becomes a fully flat bed in a semi private suite with a 23in LCD monitor. Easily a competitive product up there with the best, perhaps only surpassed by Singapore Airlines Suite Class on A380s. Entertainment for all classes will include AVOD with 50 movies and 50 short documentaries. There will be premium restrooms and complementary sleeping suits. Food is apparently prepared by a dedicated chef.

Korean Air, Prestige Sleeper Seat

Business Class is the Prestige Sleeper Seat, a fully lie flat seat with some privacy dividers. 21.6 inches wide and 71 inch seat pitch puts this seat up among the best as well. 15.4 inch AVOD monitors, and catering also prepared by the first class chef. Beyond that are the standards of business class service that are to be expected, which with Korean is typically high.

Even Korean's economy class is far from shoddy. Industry leading 34 inch seat pitch, 10.6 inch IFE screens, and power at every seat. That is fairly difficult to beat.

Korean might not have the very best first and business class products, but it is likely to have the best on the routes it services. Its economy class will be difficult to beat as well. Certainly compared to Air France and Lufthansa, which squeeze 538 and 526 passengers in their A380s, Korean Air will appear spacious in all classes, and perhaps deserves to be called the very best Skyteam airline!

SAS in flight internet to come to short haul routes

2010-12-05T13:35:00.000Z

Business Traveller reports that Star Alliance carrier SAS (Scandinavian Airline Systems) is to introduce broadband services on its Boeing 737 flights from April 2011. As these aircraft primarily fly Norwegian domestic routes and services to London, Frankfurt and Paris, it will be limited to a minority of SAS European services. Hopefully it can then be rolled out to the Airbus A320/A321 fleet as well, as I do not expect it to be installed on the aging McDonnell Douglas MD-80 fleet.

Mobile service is also to be offered, although it is unclear if this is just SMS/MMS or also voice calls. Internet access will be free for business class and economy extra (SAS's short haul premium economy product), but charged in economy class.

It is curious to see Lufthansa introducing long haul internet access, but SAS introducing short haul. Given the Lufthansa shareholding in SAS, will it be that both are testbeds for wider roll out?

Qantas upgrades Australian domestic service standards

2010-12-04T23:18:00.002Z

Qantas's strategy on its core domestic network has been to split services between its low cost subsidiary - Jetstar- and its full service offering. It has now launched an upgrade to its full service domestic offering.

Qantas domestic business class - Airbus A330

It has three key features:

- Upgraded lounges and catering in lounges;

- Upgraded catering and onboard service; and

- Next generation check in.

Next generation check in allows Qantas Frequent Flyer to automatically check in using their cards to touch in, and the card acts as a boarding pass (and boarding pass details can be automatically sent by SMS to mobile phones).

Business lounges are to have:

• New Neil Perry designed seasonal menu changing weekly

• New tray around snack service in the morning and evening

• Island dining offering a "plate of the day" with matching wine

• Appropriate time of day meal offerings and increased portion sizes

• Enhanced environment with new furnishings including Qantas signature Akira Isogawa fabric feature walls and custom lounge furniture designed specifically for Qantas

• Qantas Signature Moooi Light pendants in contrasting sizes which animate the bar area

• Enhanced environment with fresh flowers and a new scent specifically designed for Qantas by Air Aroma

• New Apple Mac technology

Qantas Club lounges will have much the same and wood fired pizzas with a candy bar. The key point being that frequent flyers will have reasonable options to eat before flights.

Economy class domestic in flight service will be closer to international standards:

• New Neil Perry influenced seasonal menu changing weekly with matching wines selected by the Qantas Wine Panel
• Complimentary Bar from 4pm on all CityFlyer flights
• New premium breakfasts
• New range of hot dinners
• Enhanced refreshments and seasonal fruit
• Enhanced personal recognition for Frequent Flyers by Cabin Crew

Complimentary bar on evening CityFlyer flights will be popular no doubt!

Qantas keeping the monopoly on quality economy class domestic travel. The challenge of Virgin Blue's premium economy is being met by an upgraded business class:

• New Neil Perry designed seasonal menu changing weekly with matching wines selected by the Qantas Wine Panel
• Addition of an entrée course on trans Continent and trans Tasman flights
• Customer Service Manager hosting Business Class passengers
• Silver service in the Business Cabin
• Appropriate time of day offering (i.e. antipasto platters in the afternoon)

Qantas is determined to remain the airline of choice for corporate travel within Australia, but the interesting thing will be to see if this sets off more competition to improve standards of service when the last few years have been primarily about price. Qantas is setting the standard for domestic service, but the money is in the corporate market, and both Virgin Blue and Tiger Airways have found it difficult to crack into a market focused more on frequency and service than price.

UPDATED: There will also be AVOD rolled out on some domestic aircraft (newer Boeing 767s). Rumour was that there is to be new business class seats, but forums have only shown new seats on A330s which are akin to international premium economy. That in itself would appear to be a downgrade.

Lufthansa to improve European service and cabins

2010-12-04T22:39:00.000Z

Business Traveller reports Lufthansa is to announce major upgrades to its European service on 15 December.

New seating will be installed believed to be identical to the new Austrian Airlines product (given Austrian is owned by Lufthansa this is hardly a surprise) which will see more seats, and a slight improvement in legroom.

The aircraft to be equipped will be Airbus A319/A320/A321s and all Boeing 737s. However it is also understood that wardrobes will be removed (which will be a downgrade for business class) and one toilet will go on the A321s.

Catering is to get an upgrade, with more food to be provided for certain economy class flight segments.

It would appear that the Lufthansa Group has decided the future is in being seen as a carrier people want to fly on, as well as one with competitive prices.

International flights with internet access to return!

2010-12-04T22:29:00.000Z

Lufthansa is to relaunch internet onboard long haul flights from January. It is to start on routes to New York and Detroit and will offer high speed access for anyone with a laptop with wifi capability and smartphones.

It will be followed up with the ability to use phones for SMS and MMS messages, but Lufthansa is not to allow phone calls, which will be a blessed relief to those who treat time in the sky as time to relax.

It will be free until the end of January 2011, after when there will be charges presumably (although one might expect it will remain free for First Class at least).

However this should kickoff a flurry of interest in internet access on long haul flights, although I am far from enthused about the idea of SMS/MMS appearing on flights with endless beeps and tones from the inane who can't get the idea that if you are holding your phone, you don't need to hear when a message is received!

BMI upgrades mid haul seating in business and economy classes

2010-12-04T20:59:00.002Z

Business Traveller reports on BMI's upgrade of its mid haul business class cabin. It applies to Airbus A321 and Airbus A320 aircraft used on routes between London Heathrow and:

- Addis Ababa via Amman

- Almaty

- Baku

- Khartoum via Beirut

- Cairo

- Damascus

- Dammam

- Freetown via Malaga

- Jeddah

- Moscow

- Tbilisi

- Tehran

- Tripoli

- Yerevan

It shows photos of the new seating here. It is basically a very nice refresh of a rather tired cabin. Whilst BMI continues to not be profitable for its owner - Lufthansa - it is not surprising, but BMI does not exactly have a world class product for many of these routes. The main advantage BMI has on most routes is that it is the only Western carrier, but on a few routes (e.g. Cairo) it isn't up with the competition as recliners without in seat power aren't exactly what passes as standard for what are in some cases long haul overnight flights!

Business Traveller reviewed the updated Business Class on the London-Beirut route.

Austrian Airlines upgrades short haul economy and business classes

2010-12-04T20:40:00.001Z

Business Traveller reports that Austrian Airlines is launching upgrades to its European services.

Austrian new short haul economy class seats

By September 2011 new seats will be installed in economy and business class in all Airbus A320s and Boeing 737s. Whilst at the same pitch as existing seats, Austrian claims the new seats will offer up to 5cm of additional knee and legroom, whilst also allowing effectively an additional row to be installed on the aircraft.

Austrian is already publicising the seat with this video which shows how the seat pocket is now behind the tray table, and the seat is made of more breathable fabric.

Of course as European Business Class includes the same seats with the middle seats blanked out, it applies for both cabins.

Particularly interesting is catering. Austrian Economy Class in Europe is having improved catering:

"In practice this means that on flights lasting more than two hours, the carrier will offer an Austrian Brettljause or a “paper bag filled with warm delicacies”. The afternoon snack will feature a range of very Austrian options in future, including a miniature Gugelhupf cake."

Business class will consistently have hot meal service on all routes, except the shortest distance flights.

Good on Austrian, pushing itself as a quality full service carrier on European internal flights.

Premium Economy for Turkish Airlines

2010-11-15T14:52:00.001Z

Some years after economy plus/premium economy classes started appearing, they have grown in popularity as business class is increasingly led by airlines with fully lie flat seats. Premium economy is seen on both BA and Virgin Atlantic, SAS, Air France, JAL, ANA, Qantas and Air NZ, with United's famous Economy Plus product being economy with more legroom. Cathay Pacific has been openly discussing whether a premium economy product would be warranted, and now according to ABTN, Turkish Airlines is introducing a premium economy class on a number of long haul routes. It would appear likely that it will be seen on its new Boeing 777 and Airbus A330 aircraft. Business traveller has depictions of the cabin (and other revamped cabins) showing an apparent 2-3-2 configuration (although this would appear to be on an A330, the following economy class picture must be on a 777 with 3-3-3).

Turkish Airlines new premium economy

The appearance of this is welcome, as it adds to Star Alliance premium economy offerings, which in Europe are rare since BMI has abandoned the class, with only SAS providing an offering on long haul routes. It looks similar to the seating now provided by Virgin Atlantic in premium economy. Turkish has a range of competitors, from Lufthansa to the Middle East hub carriers, most of which have no such product. As an increasing number of better off leisure travellers are preferring to avoid being crammed like sardines in economy, those airlines without premium economy may be completely ignored by them. Turkish looks like it is trying to capture a share of the market.

First Class - Star Alliance

2010-11-07T20:49:00.000Z

Star Alliance carriers with first class products are conveniently listed in this post on Flyertalk. Why is this interesting? For starters, many Star Alliance carriers are part of the Star Alliance upgrade scheme, which allows frequent flyer points to be used to upgrade on any other participating Star Alliance carrier. However, the most important reason to care is that some actually do want something more than business class.

It doesn't matter whether the carrier of your Star Alliance frequent flyer scheme has first class, you can still upgrade with points from business to first class on another carrier.

The participating carriers for Star Alliance upgrades are:

- Air China

- Air New Zealand

- ANA

- Asiana

- Austrian

- Brussels

- Continental

- LOT

- Lufthansa

- SAS

- Singapore Airlines

- Swiss

- TAP

- Thai

- United

However, what carriers have first class and what are they like? I am deliberately largely ignoring domestic first class in the US in this mix, as it is effectively pitched at where short haul business class is within Asia and Europe.

Air China has first class on all of its Boeing 747s, all of its Airbus A340s, its medium haul Boeing 767s and 777s, and all of its Airbus A319s, A320s, A321s and Boeing 737s and 757s. It's latest long haul first class product is called Forbidden Pavilion First Class and looks remarkably like United new long haul first class seats. Fully lie flat pods. There is AVOD, exclusive catering and free limousine transfers at Shanghai and Beijing. Beijing and Shanghai have dedicated First Class lounges.

The routes for the new product are:

Beijing to JFK, LAX, San Francisco, Vancouver, Frankfurt, Munich, London Heathrow, Paris CDG, Athens, Rome and Madrid.

Shanghai Pudong to Frankfurt, Paris CDG and Milan.

Short and medium haul first class is also available, primarily on domestic Chinese routes and some medium haul routes around Asia.

Verdict? Air China's new long haul hard product is world class, but soft product doesn't have the finesse of some others. Short and medium haul first class is simply better than economy.

ANA (All Nippon Airways) has first class only on long haul flights operated by Boeing 747-400s and Boeing 777-200ERs and Boeing 777-300ERs. The routes operated with first class are between Tokyo Narita and:

- Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York JFK ;

- London Heathrow, Paris and Frankfurt.

ANA's long haul first class is widely regarded as exemplary, with fully lie flat beds and the latest incarnation on the Boeing 777-300ERs being private sleeper suites with sliding doors. It has a dedicated first class lounge at Narita and arrivals lounge as well. ANA's soft product is considered exceptional and is up there with the best. As the launch airline for the Boeing 787 it will be interesting to see if any of those aircraft get first class.

Verdict? You'll be hard pressed to find a better first class on the routes ANA operates.

Asiana has first class on all of its Boeing 747s and some long haul Boeing 777s. Lounge access is shared with business class.

The confirmed routes with first class are between Seoul and:

- Los Angeles and New York JFK

- Tokyo and

- Frankfurt

However, some of the aircraft may operate medium haul services in Asia with first class sold as business class with preference given to top tier Asiana frequent flyers.

Asiana's long haul first class product is highly competitive, with fully lie flat pods, and a reputation for excellent soft product. However, it is rolling out a new fully flat bed business class, so it will be interesting to see if it can retain first class on long haul. It is notable that routes such as London and Paris do not have first class.

Verdict? Asiana's long haul first class is right up to standard, with a soft product to match. Shame about the lack of routes.

Continental Airlines (now merged with United but still with separate branding, products and flight codes) has a US domestic first class product on all of its Boeing 737s and its Boeing 757-300 fleet. Consider the seating to be akin to a good long haul premium economy class, and the soft product service likewise. Continental's domestic first class provides access to the President's Club lounges, which are akin to business class lounges. Continental has no international first class product.

Egyptair has first class seating on its Airbus A340 and Boeing 777-200ER fleet. However, the A340 fleet is being replaced with new A330s that do not have first class, and the 777-200ER fleet is being reportedly reduced in scale. There are no dedicated First Class lounges. First Class passengers have access to business class lounges.

The routes with Egyptair first class are:

Cairo-Osaka

Cairo-Kuwait

Cairo-Jeddah

Cairo-Riyadh

Cairo-Bangkok

Cairo-Guangzhou

Cairo-Abu Dhabi

However, you should not get too excited about this. Egyptair first class hard product is not remotely close to world class, it is closer to business class of around 15 years ago. It consists of recliners in a 2-2-2 configuration. Soft product involves personalised attention and reasonable catering, but no alcohol. Consider Egyptair first class as an old fashioned business class product and you'll get the idea. As Egyptair is introducing a new business class on new A330s and 777-300ERs that surpasses this first class, you can see where first class is heading.

Verdict? If you can get Egyptair first class at prices below that of business class competitors, then it's a good deal, as you'll get excellent personalised service and good quality catering.   However, this isn't even in the same league as business class on most other Star Alliance carriers, let alone first class.

Lufthansa

Lufthansa has its new private fully lie flat first class seats on Airbus A380s, and its full reclining first class on all of its Boeing 747s, all Airbus A330s and some Airbus A340s. Lufthansa maintains first class on many long haul routes and has a dedicated First Class terminal at its main hub in Frankfurt.   There are also dedicated First Class lounges at Frankfurt and Munich, and 30 Senator lounges accessible only by First Class and Star Alliance Gold customers (not business class). It has one of the most extensive first class route networks in the world.

Routes with first class are:

To Americas
Frankfurt-Atlanta
Frankfurt-Boston
Munich-Boston
Frankfurt-Buenos Aires
Munich-Charlotte
Frankfurt-Chicago
Munich-Chicago
Dusseldorf-Chicago
Frankfurt-Dallas
Frankfurt-Denver
Munich-Denver
Frankfurt-Detroit
Frankfurt-Houston
Frankfurt-Los Angeles
Munich-Los Angeles
Frankfurt-Mexico City
Frankfurt-Miami
Munich-Montreal
Frankfurt-New York JFK
Munich-New York JFK
Frankfurt-New York Newark
Dusseldorf-New York Newark
Frankfurt-Orlando
Frankfurt-Philadelphia
Frankfurt-San Francisco
Munich-San Francisco
Frankfurt-Sao Paulo
Munich-San Paulo
Frankfurt-Seattle
Dusseldorf-Toronto
Frankfurt-Vancouver
Frankfurt-Washington Dulles

To Africa

Frankfurt-Accra
Frankfurt-Cape Town
Frankfurt-Johannesburg

To Middle East

Frankfurt-Abu Dhabi
Frankfurt-Bahrain
Frankfurt-Dubai
Munich-Dubai
Frankfurt-Tel Aviv
Munich-Tel Aviv

To Asia

Frankfurt-Bangkok
Frankfurt-Beijing
Frankfurt-Chennai
Frankfurt-Delhi
Munich-Delhi
Frankfurt-Guangzhou
Frankfurt-Ho Chi Minh City
Frankfurt-Hong Kong
Frankfurt-Jakarta
Frankfurt-Kolkata
Frankfurt-Kuala Lumpur
Frankfurt-Mumbai
Frankfurt-Nagoya
Frankfurt-Nanking
Frankfurt-Osaka
Frankfurt-Seoul
Munich-Seoul
Frankfurt-Shanghai
Frankfurt-Singapore
Frankfurt-Tokyo Narita

Within Asia
Bangkok-Ho Chi Minh City
Bangkok-Kuala Lumpur
Singapore-Jakarta

Verdict? Lufthansa soft product is up there with the best including an unbeatable airside experience at Frankfurt. Hard product on the A380 is also up there, on other aircraft it is a bit dated, being recliner seats that simply recline all the way.   Still it may be the only first class choice on many of these routes and a reasonable one at that.

Singapore Airlines

Singapore Airlines has effectively four types of first class product if you count the A380 "Suites" as akin to first class (although the airline says it is "beyond" first). The private suites with closing doors and dedicated beds (separate from the seating) are only on the Airbus A380. The "new" long haul first class involves 35 inch wide leather private seats that recline fully into flat beds with 23 inch LCD IFE screens, and are seen on Boeing 777-300ER aircraft and are now being retrofitted to some regional Boeing 777-300s. The other long haul first class involves 22 inch wide flat beds with 17 inch IFE screens and are on the remaining Boeing 747 aircraft. There is finally a regional first class with recliner sleeper seats for flights within Asia on some Boeing 777-200ER and Boeing 777-300 aircraft. What is impressive is the extent of the medium haul network with first class.

Singapore Airlines has one of the best soft products around, although the "ground" experience is good it isn't exceptional, although there are always dedicated First Class lounges.

Note not all services on these routes include first class, only those with aircraft listed above.

To Americas (via Asia or Europe)
Singapore-Moscow-Houston
Singapore-Tokyo-Los Angeles
Singapore-Frankfurt-New York JFK
Singapore-Hong Kong-San Francisco
Singapore-Seoul-San Francisco

To Europe
Singapore-Milan-Barcelona
Singapore-Frankfurt
Singapore-Dubai-Istanbul
Singapore-London Heathrow
Singapore-Milan
Singapore-Moscow
Singapore-Munich
Singapore-Munich-Manchester
Singapore-Paris
Singapore-Zurich

To Middle East
Singapore-Dubai

To Oceania
Singapore-Auckland
Singapore-Melbourne
Singapore-Sydney

Within Asia
Singapore-Bandar Seri Begawan
Singapore-Bangalore
Singapore-Bangkok
Singapore-Beijing
Singapore-Chennai
Singapore-Colombo
Singapore-Delhi
Singapore-Hong Kong
Singapore-Hyderabad
Singapore-Jakarta
Singapore-Lahore-Karachi
Singapore-Manila
Singapore-Mumbai
Singapore-Seoul
Singapore-Shanghai
Singapore-Taipei
Singapore-Tokyo

Verdict? The Suites are the best in the business, the rest aren't far behind.   Almost certainly the best first class on any routes it operates. You'll struggle to get an upgrade on any of these, and not at all in Suites or the 777-300ER.

Swiss

Swiss has been making an effort to put first class on all of its long haul routes.   It has first class on Airbus A340s and most Airbus A330s.   The new first class being rolled out has semi-private suites with sliding doors. The existing first class still has fully lie flat beds which are as good as most others. Swiss soft product is impeccably good. There are dedicated first class lounges at Zurich and Geneva, with limo escort to the plane.

To Americas
Zurich-Boston
Zurich-Chicago
Zurich-Los Angeles
Zurich-Miami
Geneva-New York JFK
Zurich-New York JFK
Zurich-Sao Paulo

To Africa
Zurich-Johannesburg
Zurich-Nairobi-Dar es Salaam

To Asia
Zurich-Bangkok
Zurich-Delhi
Zurich-Hong Kong
Zurich-Mumbai
Zurich-Shanghai
Zurich-Tokyo

To Middle East
Zurich-Cairo
Zurich-Dubai-Muscat
Zurich-Jeddah
Zurich-Riyadh

Verdict? Swiss is one of the best. Smaller planes than the larger airlines, but excellent service and hard product that outdoes its owner - Lufthansa. Probably the best first class of any airline in Europe.

TAM

TAM is Brazil's largest airline and a recent joiner of Star Alliance. It has first class on its Airbus A330s and Boeing 777s. TAM has been making exceptional efforts to improve its product across the board.   Its hard product has fully lie flat beds in semi-pods, perhaps now to the standard of the latest business class product on Swiss and ANA (which is among the best) and easily to a standard of United in first class.

Sao Paulo- Frankfurt
Sao Paulo- London Heathrow
Sao Paulo- Madrid
Sao Paulo- Miami
Rio de Janiero- New York JFK
Sao Paulo- New York JFK
Sao Paulo- Orlando
Rio de Janiero- Paris CDG
Sao Paulo- Paris CDG

Verdict? One of South America's best airlines, damned good product from the US and well worth considering on the other routes.

Thai Airways

Thai has first class on long haul aircraft only, being Boeing 747s, Airbus A340-600s and Boeing 777-300ERs. Royal First Class is on the A340s and some of the 747s, with fully lie flat bed pods. The other 747s have flat recliners, and 777s have private pods. Thai has a dedicate first class lounge at Bangkok with a spa, and some other lounges have first class sections.

To Europe
Bangkok-Frankfurt
Bangkok-London Heathrow
Bangkok-Rome-Madrid
Bangkok-Moscow
Bangkok-Munich
Bangkok-Paris
Bangkok-Zurich

To Middle East
Bangkok-Dubai

To Oceania
Bangkok-Brisbane
Bangkok-Sydney

To Asia
Bangkok-Beijing
Bangkok-Hong Kong
Bangkok-Shanghai
Bangkok-Tokyo

Verdict? Thai's soft product is good, hard product is up to standard, especially since the poorer quality recliners are not sold as first class on most routes they are operated on.

Turkish Airlines

Turkish only has first class on its new Boeing 777-300ER aircraft. The product has new private semi-cabins with fully lie flat beds, and high standard soft product compared to business class.

The only route with first class are:
Istanbul-Bangkok
Istanbul-Hong Kong
Istanbul-New York JFK
Istanbul-Tokyo Narita

Verdict? Worth a shot. Excellent hard product, soft product probably better up to a good business class.

United
As with Continental, United has first class on many domestic US flights. However, its international product comprises two types of suites, both feature pod like fully lie flat beds. The new product is on all Boeing 747s and Boeing 767s (and now being rolled out on 777s), the older one on international configuration Boeing 777s. Hard product is up to standard, soft product more like a good business class. United has dedicated International First Class lounges.

To Americas
Washington Dulles-Buenos Aires
Washington Dulles-Rio de Janiero
Washington Dulles-Sao Paulo

To Europe
Chicago- Amsterdam
Washington Dulles- Amsterdam
Washington Dulles-London Heathrow-Brussels
Chicago- Frankfurt
San Francisco- Frankfurt
Washington Dulles- Frankfurt
Washington Dulles- Geneva
Chicago-London Heathrow
Los Angeles-London Heathrow
San Francisco-London Heathrow
Washington Dulles- London Heathrow
Washington Dulles- Moscow DME
Chicago-Munich
Washington Dulles-Munich
Chicago- Paris CDG
San Francisco- Paris CDG
Washington Dulles - Paris CDG
Washington Dulles - Rome
Washington Dulles- Zurich

To Asia
Chicago- Bangkok
Honolulu- Bangkok
Los Angeles-Bangkok
San Francisco-Bangkok
Seattle- Bangkok
Chicago- Beijing
San Francisco-Beijing
Washington Dulles- Beijing
Chicago- Ho Chi Minh City
San Francisco-Ho Chi Minh City
Chicago- Hong Kong
Honolulu- Hong Kong
Los Angeles-Hong Kong
San Francisco-Hong Kong
Seattle- Hong Kong
San Francisco- Nagoya
Chicago- Osaka Kansei
Honolulu- Osaka Kansei
San Francisco- Osaka Kansei
Chicago- Seoul
Honolulu- Seoul
Los Angeles-Seoul
San Francisco- Seoul
Seattle- Seoul
Chicago- Shanghai
San Francisco- Shanghai
Chicago- Singapore
Honolulu- Singapore
San Francisco- Singapore
Seattle- Singapore
Chicago- Taipei
Honolulu- Taipei
Los Angeles-Taipei
San Francisco- Taipei
Seattle- Taipei
Chicago- Tokyo Narita
Honolulu- Tokyo Narita
Los Angeles- Tokyo Narita
San Francisco- Tokyo Narita
Seattle- Tokyo Narita
Washington Dulles- Tokyo Narita
Tokyo Narita-Seoul
Tokyo Narita-Singapore
Tokyo Narita-Taipei

To Middle East
Washington Dulles- Dubai
Washington Dulles- Kuwait

To Oceania
Los Angeles-Melbourne
San Francisco-Melbourne
Los Angeles- Sydney
San Francisco- Sydney

Verdict? United's long haul first is a reasonable product, but probably not the best first class on the routes it operates on.

China Airlines returns to New Zealand

2010-11-03T09:04:00.000Z

Given my parochial interest in aviation down under, it is good to report that, according to Airline Route, China Airlines (Taiwan) is resuming service to New Zealand.

It is extending its 3x weekly Taipei-Brisbane service onto Auckland, via Brisbane, using Airbus A330-300 aircraft. China Airlines last flew to New Zealand 10 years ago, and Air New Zealand stopped flying to Taiwan over five years ago.

This will be a boon to tourism between Taiwan and New Zealand, but also adds competition on the Trans Tasman Brisbane-Auckland route 3x a week. What will also be interesting is if this provides another low cost option to travel between Europe and New Zealand. China Airlines has tended to offer competitive business class through fares on similar routes.

Its A330s are in a two-class configuration, with angled lie flat seats in Dynasty (business) class and AVOD IFE in both classes.

Shanghai Airlines leaves Star Alliance

2010-11-02T16:58:00.000Z

Shanghai Airlines was originally set up by the Shanghai municipality, and has since received extensive private investment from within China. Its route network is confined to Asia, with an extensive Chinese domestic network as well as routes to Japan, South Korea and south east Asia. It joined the Star Alliance in 2007, but as of 1 November 2010 it is no longer a member. The reason being its impending merger with China Eastern Airlines, a future member of SkyTeam (with routes reaching Europe, the Middle East, North America and Australia).

It will be a minor loss for Star Alliance frequent flyers, given the concentration of domestic services, but it may well have the title of the shortest running Star Alliance member to date. Its reputation was mixed, with good service in the air by Chinese standards, but poor ground service especially when things went wrong. For what it's worth, this is the Skytrax rating details, which places it at 3 stars - the same overall rating as all major US carriers.

iPads for entertainment - Finnair

2010-11-02T15:18:00.000Z

According to Business Traveller, Finnair has announced that it will be launching a trial of supplying iPads (on loan) to some of its premium passengers.

iPads will be handed to passengers in the Finnair Via Lounge at Helsinki Airport "preloaded with content including newspapers, magazines, films, TV series and games, as well as a bespoke Finnair application designed to gather feedback and ideas for product development." Given Finnair has been promoting Helsinki Airport as a great hub to fly between Europe and Asia, there is an opportunity for business class passengers on many routes to try this out. Given Finnair is often the cheapest One World airline in business class between European cities and Asian cities (and indeed Australia codesharing on BA/Qantas for the final hop from Bangkok or Hong Kong to Sydney), it is certainly presenting itself as a different carrier at the premium end of the market.

Furthermore, iPads will also be supplied to Business Class passengers on the Helsinki-Hong Kong route itself in November. A great trial to determine if inflight entertainment might be better delivered on iPads rather than screens built into the seat.

A gimmick? Well maybe not. iPads will have greater functionality than any airline IFE (In Flight Entertainment) AVOD system, and have two other advantages. For starters, decentralising IFE reduces the risk that an entire system will freeze or break down. If an iPad fails, get another one. Secondly, it could reduce the weight of IFE in premium cabins, by avoiding the wiring and separate boxes for each IFE unit at every seat. Naturally it would be a nightmare to introduce in economy class, given the size of the cabin, greater chance of theft or damage and the like.

Still, top marks to Finnair for innovation. As it has been converting its long haul business class to fully lie flat seats, it is now an excellent economical business class alternative, especially for those earning frequent flyer points and status on One World carriers. It certainly outdoes its Scandinavian rival SAS.

First Class - where has it come from?

2010-11-02T13:06:00.000Z

Turn the clock back 25 years and you'll see first class on most jet airline flights. Long haul, medium haul and short haul. Business class then was much closer to what is called premium economy today, a bit more legroom, seat width, recline and more service. As a result, first class remained the only way to travel long distances and get some semblance of sleep. The soft product was luxurious, with personalised service, multi-course meals served on trolleys and platters. The hard product comprised pairs of seats that reclined generously, but never fully flat. On short haul flights first class also involved pairs of seating on narrow bodied aircraft, less recline and legroom, but still it was first class.

However, already first class was being sacrificed on short haul routes everywhere, except in the United States domestically (where it persists today), as that cabin was rebranded as business class or a new business class was introduced. Curiously, Australian domestic airlines, in the days of the "Two Airline Policy" would compete on service. TAA introduced a business class alongside first and economy, Ansett kept with just first class., until eventually both airlines had business class, and it merged into first. However, as travel patterns changed, with ever increasing business travel by those at levels lower than senior management, the demand for flexible economy travel grew, and the term "first class" seemed extravagant. First class started to be the preserve of international routes, and medium to long haul ones only. With the end of first class on intra-European flights in the 80s and 90s, first class also was removed from many medium haul international flights in Asia. Two cabin aircraft for medium haul became increasingly common, as the extension of ETOPs limits allowed the likes of Boeing 767s, and Airbus A330s to operate longer haul routes.

Business class in the meantime had moved on with ever increasing seat pitch and deeper reclines, to the point that the real differential with first class was narrowing with some carriers. The question for carriers would become whether first class was worth retaining, and if so, how to differentiate it from business class.

Aircraft technology would also play a role in changing demands for first class. First the Airbus A340, then the Boeing 747-400 would both significantly extend the range for fully laden long haul flights. Non-stop flights from the likes of Tokyo, Hong Kong and Singapore to major European hubs, along with non-stop flights from Tokyo to San Francisco would mean longer flights. By then business class had established itself as the preferred class for much long haul business travel, and for premium leisure travel. First class was increasingly the preserve of chief executives, serious entrepreneurs, the R&F (rich and famous) and upgrades.

Yes, the other trend in the industry was the rise of frequent flyer programmes and loyalty, and the ability to spend frequent flyer points on upgrades. Of course the price of promoting loyalty was to sacrifice empty seats for upgrades, and some airlines started to notice that the first class section was becoming more and more occupied by upgrades rather than paying passengers.

Similarly, the airline alliances and codesharing emerging in the late 1990s, along with the start of liberalisation of international air agreements meant airlines would now co-operate more often outside their core operations. Such arrangements meant, for example, that British Airways need not fly to most major airports in Australia and to New Zealand, but only fly to Sydney and Melbourne (dropped more recently) and use Qantas to codeshare beyond. Quid pro quo was Qantas flying to only a handful of European destinations, using BA to hub connections from Heathrow. The future was in frequency. Better to have a couple of daily flights to a hub, than single weekly flights to multiple destinations far away.

However, what did this mean for first class? Well at the same time the demand for first class was remaining flat, but business class was taking off. Then one trend would challenge airlines to lift first class up to a new standard, or drop it. Flat beds.

The first airline to do this was British Airways in 1996. The concept seems simple now, take out some seats, and design new ones that are private that convert to fully flat beds, with pillow and blankets. The result of this was to effectively challenge other major long haul airlines to do the same, or give up.

The list of those to give up would grow. Air Canada, Delta, Northwest and Continental all gave up from the North American side, whereas Iberia, Aer Lingus, KLM, Austrian, SAS and Finnair would give up in Europe. As others would quickly join the move to get flat beds, or at least seats that recline fully flat in first class (Singapore, Cathay, JAL, United, American, Lufthansa, Air France), those who went for what they called "Business-First" or the like would essentially take their first class recliners and offer a lower level of soft product. After all, they couldn't sell those products as first class, so they may as well sell the "best" business class they can, and so business class became like first class once was, without the trimmings.

Another trend was to differentiate lounges. With business class passengers (and increasingly premium status frequent flyers) filling up airport lounges, some airlines recreated new business class lounges to leave first class lounges as more exclusive. The noise, bustle and lack of privacy in first class lounges was simply addressed by moving them to new lounges. Separate first class checkin was also a must.

So by the turn of the century the product differentials were clear. First Class on any decent world class airline involved a rather private lie flat bed with all the trimmings. Business Class would be a wide amply reclining seat, with some trimmings. Economy was, well economy.

Yet the next revolution was becoming clear. Virgin Atlantic had never had a first class, it offered what it called Upper Class, which was pitched between business and first class. By now it had started offering fully lie flat recliners in Upper Class that meant, in effect, business class with a lie flat seat, particularly as its pricing was generally competitive with BA's recliner based business class.

The response of BA was revolutionary, for it launched Club World, with fully lie flat seats, in business class. Suddenly, business class was looking better than first class had been only a few years before.

This was quickly followed by other airlines which would not replicate BA's fully flat model, but rather a halfway house of angled lie flat seats. Singapore Airlines, Lufthansa, JAL, Air France, Cathay Pacific would all introduce seats that would lie flat but slope towards the floor. From 2001 through till 2008 airlines would still be introducing this product as "lie flat seats", with American, Air Canada, Iberia, Swiss, KLM, Austrian, SAS, Alitalia, Thai, JAL, ANA, Malaysian, Qantas, Korean etc all replacing recliners with what was appearing to be the industry standard.

Yet in the UK, Virgin Atlantic responded to the BA product with its own fully lie flat product in herringbone style. It would take only four to five years before the likes of Air NZ, Air Canada, Delta and Singapore Airlines would introduce their own fully lie flat seats on long haul, with more recently Swiss, Continental and ANA moving towards fully lie flat business class.

Where did this leave first class? Quite simply, increasingly isolated. With fully lie flat business class available on more and more routes, the simple question would be asked as to what value first class offered? Unless money was no object, and exclusivity and service were especially valued, business class offered to more and more a perfectly acceptable premium product. Those with top tier frequent flyer status may even have access to first class lounges whilst flying business class, but what mattered the most was a flat surface to sleep on and space. Less and less premium travellers were willing to pay 50-100% more than business class to simply get a wider and longer flat surface, better food and wine, and even more attentive service. Certainly not enough to justify first class on all long haul international routes.

So first class has continued to be culled from some airlines (such as Egyptair), with others cutting back the routes offered and upgrading the product even more. In the race for the best first class in recent years, Singapore Airlines and Emirates have been at the top of the game, with both offering semi-cabins for passengers. The Suite product on Singapore Airlines A380s with a separate bed surface is first class par excellence, whereas Emirates is not far behind with shutter doors on the wide reclining seat with a personal minibar (and shower on the A380). Lufthansa has preferred to upgrade ground service, with an exclusive First Class terminal at Frankfurt and limo service to and from the plane. Even then, whilst Etihad rivals Emirates, Qatar Airways is abandoning first class on all new aircraft.

The extravagance of semi-cabins has not been followed by new first class products for Qantas, BA, Cathay Pacific or United, all of which have tweaked their semi-private lie flat seats with more room. What is most notable is the increased number of routes without first class, with the concentration more and more on major hubs connecting other major hubs over long haul routes. For example, first class has gone from Tokyo to Sydney on Qantas. Only two carriers offer serious long haul first class from New Zealand now - Emirates and Singapore Airlines - reflecting the relatively low volume of very high yield traffic to and from that country.

Yet first class persists on both United and American Airlines on many of their international routes, as it does on BA, Lufthansa and Air France (but precious few other European airlines). Emirates and Etihad often provide the only first class option for various trip combinations, but the big Asian hub airlines - Singapore, Cathay, Malaysian, JAL, ANA and Korean all still have first class. So do the growing Indian carriers Air India and Jet Airways.

Unless airlines have a serious premium product (and demand for such a product) first class will becoming rarer, as few travellers will see the point of paying more once they can buy a lie flat business class product. Yet for the discerning traveller for whom budget is no object, it IS a taste of something a bit special, especially when some airlines have over 60 passengers in business class, a cabin of 8-12 in first class guarantees personalised service.

In coming weeks I will be reviewing what's left in first class by airline alliance (and those outside) and what there is to offer.

Iberia upgrades medium haul business class

2010-11-01T21:49:00.000Z

Business Traveller reports that Iberia is installing new hard product on its Airbus A319s (and likely A320s) for its routes from Spain to Cairo, Tel Aviv, Malabo, Lagos and Moscow. It is back to a classic long haul configuration of 2-2 with 50 inch seat pitch and 30 degree recline. Comfortable enough to relax and stretch out, and get a nap on these flights which aren't quite long enough for a full overnight.

This adds another decent option for One World frequent flyers who may connect in Madrid or Barcelona to go onwards on Iberia, and marks Iberia lifting its game now that it has merged with BA, as soft product is also reportedly improved. From the UK this could be a low cost option to Malabo and Lagos in business class.

With the upgrade of Iberia's long haul business class on its A340 fleet to fully lie flat seats, Iberia may no longer be justifying its unfortunate reputation as a second rate European carrier. It has been lifting itself up to the standard of BA, which can only mean it can attract more transit traffic and more high yield traffic. Now it's time to uplift premium short haul as well.

Qantas to cut first class from all except A380s

2010-02-01T15:10:00.002Z

Business Traveller has a report, unconfirmed, that Qantas is to remove first class from all aircraft except its A380 fleet. Given that first class only exists on A380s and 747s, this means that a significant number of routes will no longer offer first class.

Qantas has not yet announced when it will be ceasing to fly Boeing 747s. Given part of the 747 fleet is less than 10 years old, it is likely some will continue flying for the next 5-10 years (especially the 747-400ER, especially designed to fly fully laden MEL-LAX non stop).

QF 747s at present fly:
SYD-SIN-FRA
SYD-SFO
SYD-LAX-JFK
SYD-JNB
SYD-HKG
SYD-EZE
SYD-BKK-LHR
MEL-HKG-LHR
MEL-LAX
MEL-SIN-LHR
BNE-LAX
AKL-LAX

Some of these are on 744s without First Class, and some will naturally migrate fully onto A380s (LHR routes), some may migrate to A330s. However, beyond that it would appear that First Class into Australia is seen by Qantas as only justified on flight to the US and UK.

Air New Zealand - images of new long haul

2010-01-26T13:39:00.005Z

How the Skycouch works (folding up from under the seat).

Premium Economy looks closer to some business class designs, although the recline is little different:

Business Premier looks little different:

Video summary of all products

Full Air New Zealand image set on flickr

Air New Zealand new long haul - compared with the competition?

2010-01-26T12:18:00.001Z

In economy, skycouches can’t be beaten. For those not in skycouches it becomes a different story. For legroom and seat width, both Thai and Malaysian beat NZ with wider seats and marginally more legroom in economy. However, NZ easily beats Qantas and Cathay with two inches more legroom and comparable seat width. Emirates is probably on a par with NZ, which is frankly a slight step backwards.

In premium economy the only competitor is Qantas, and with this NZ has slipped ahead a couple of notches. With Cathay and Malaysian airlines both announcing premium economy products, it will be a segment of the market that will be moving ahead. Of course on both of the London runs, BA and Virgin compete for the LA and Hong Kong routes from London, but NZ beats both. Certainly the catering offer in premium economy remains the best. NZ’s main competition is probably cheap business class on the likes of Royal Brunei (although it is a three stop service to London!).

In business premier Singapore Airlines remains the standard to beat on flights to NZ. With such wide seats, privacy, large entertainment screens and seating parallel to the cabin, on its 77W flights to/from Auckland (not the 77E flights to Auckland and Christchurch), it has in my view, the superior hard product. However, NZ still soundly beats the rather narrow cheap version of the same seat concept on Cathay, whereas Malaysian, Korean and Thai still have sloping lie flat seats on flights to NZ. Qantas only has fully lie flat seats on the A380s, which are only some flights to London, although BA has long had fully lie flat seats on all long haul flights in business. Emirates has a mix of fully flat and recliner seats on routes from NZ to Europe, although A380s are consistently with fully flat products. However, NZ’s proposed food offering will easily excel all of them.

For catering, NZ will clearly be the market leader in its part of the world. Only a few airlines, like Austrian, go for cooking food fresh, it isn’t cheap, but it makes a major point of difference from other airlines. It will be a significant reason to use NZ over other carriers in the front cabins.

For entertainment, it will be another step forward, with larger entertainment screens in at least economy and premium economy, and an improved system. It will be up with the current best, although it is unclear if there will be USB ports to charge MP3 players and laptop power at every seat.

Still, it keeps NZ ahead of the game, and gives some further potential to move forward when the 787s arrive.

Air New Zealand new long haul - soft product and entertainment

2010-01-26T12:06:00.003Z

The news here is primarily in catering.

New ovens allowing food to be freshly cooked, with indications this can include steak, bacon, eggs and pizza. Business Premier customers will be able to order on demand food the way they want it. Premium Economy looks like having a similar option. Undoubtedly compared to reheating food, this is a major step up from the status quo. Although eating on demand in business class is increasingly available, it is typically seen in first class.

No doubt economy class food will still be reheated, as there would not be enough time to do anything else. However, being able to order snacks and drinks on demand will be a challenge for the cabin crew. Crew will face the challenge of people ordering drinks more easily than at present (easier to select on a screen than to push a call button and ask for service), but also cooking rather than heating meals.

A new entertainment system will be installed, using the Panasonic system now installed on 767s and A320s. Screens in economy will be 2” larger than at present, and it will be touchscreen. Without hard shell seats in economy, this could be a nuisance particularly with children behind a passenger. However, one innovation will be the use of the system to indicate when meals are to be served, what is available and when lights will be turned down. This additional information for travelers will be a nice touch. It also looks like all seats have power points for laptops and MP3 players.

Bathrooms have been redesigned, hopefully premium bathrooms will have more room and it is interesting to see NZ following Lufthansa in having opening windows in bathrooms.

So overall some useful tweaks, although I'd be interested to know the size of entertainment screens in premium economy and business premier. The latter now has screens smaller than the latest products by Singapore and Emirates.

Catering is the most exciting change though. It is an area Air NZ has decided differentiates itself clearly from the competition, and is an opportunity to be innovative and get a reputation that premium travellers will appreciate.

Verdict: Potential for NZ to be world leader in business class catering, it already is in premium economy (serving business class food). In Economy it's already good by industry standards. Entertainment system largely a tweak, but the introduction of inflight information through the system regarding food, lighting and the rest is a good step forward. Gets an A.

Air New Zealand new longhaul - Business Premier

2010-01-26T12:04:00.005Z

It’s fair to say there is nothing revolutionary about what NZ is planning here. It is essentially the same herringbone configuration, just with some tweaks of the seats. The big leap forward is the catering (described elsewhere).

One of the main criticisms of the NZ (and VS, and to be fair CX and AC) product is the lack of storage space and the inability of passengers to look out of the windows. That hasn’t been addressed, which is presumably because to do so would mean less seats. However, NZ has had substantial success with this product as it is, and it still beats most of its competitors. The story hear is evolution not revolution.

Verdict: An already good product significantly improved with catering upgraded. Not the best in its class, but certainly in the top five. A "B" for the improvement, and it's all about catering.

Air New Zealand new longhaul - Premium Economy

2010-01-26T10:37:00.007Z

By increasing the size of premium economy to 50 on the 77Ws compared to 39 on 747s (and 36 on 77Es) Air NZ is betting on this being a class for substantial growth. The new premium economy class looks like it will be setting new standards for this class.

New Premium Economy on 777-300ER

It's fair to say Air NZ's existing premium economy hard product didn't involve much imagination. On 747s it is the economy class seat, with an inch or so more width, and much more seat pitch with double the recline. However, it is in essence, the same recaro economy class seat. One of the advantages has been the cabins, with the upper deck and the small side cabins in front of economy on 747s offering quietness and exclusivity in themselves, as well as side storage bins for luggage.

However, on 77Es premium economy is about legroom, with 10 inches more seat pitch and more recline, but the same width. The 3-3-3 configuration on existing 777s has been criticised for being below the standard of other airlines with premium economy. Notably BA's 77Es have a 2-4-2 configuration with wider seats. Air NZ is quite wrong in its press release claiming 3-3-3 is the industry standard for premium economy.

I had predicted Air NZ would remove a seat in each row for premium economy, but it has gone much further. It is now 2-2-2. Only BMI offers such a configuration in premium economy, and it doesn't fly anywhere near NZ (and it is basically offering its old business class).

The new seats are in hard shells and face away from each other, creating a degree of privacy. A key innovation is that pairs of seats can either be treated as separate, or the space between them used for couples to share meals or to lounge. These options help to establish the product as being seriously superior to economy.

Instead of a footrest, passengers get a beanbag to rest their feet on, which will be interesting to see how successful it might be.

The degree of recline is not a step up from the current product though, it is 9". That sadly does not bring it up to the level of BMI's A330s, and only matches the likes of Qantas. There is no doubt this is a better seat than Qantas, but to really be an economy version of business class it would need to offer a recline of around 45 degrees to passengers.

However, the seat pitch is apparently 36" according to the LOPA. Given premium economy on 747s is currently 38" and on 777s it is 42", this is a significant sacrifice of legroom. Maybe the configuration makes up for this, but we will have to see.

All in all it looks good, offers more comfort and privacy, but an alternative to business class it isn't. By no means is this a substitute for a lie flat bed, or indeed given some airlines offer cheap deals in business class (though usually not fully lie flat products), that would be preferable to premium economy.

Verdict: A serious improvement to the previous product, with wider more private seats, more flexibility and a improvement in catering. It would get an "A" if the pitch wasn't being sacrificed, but it is. So I'm going to say a B.

Air New Zealand new long haul - Economy skycouches

2010-01-26T10:07:00.008Z

The big news has been the announcement of the skycouches in economy. However, it is worth reviewing the total hard product that has been announced.

First, beyond the hype about the Skycouch is the rest of the cabin.

Seat pitch (distance between rows) is one inch LESS compared to the 747 fleet, but one inch MORE than the 77E fleet. Given the product is for aircraft replacing 747s, this is a minor, but noticeable step backwards.

Seat width is between 0.5 and 0.8 inches less than the 747 and the 77E fleet. With an extra seat squeezed into a cabin that is currently 3-3-3 as the industry standard in economy, Air NZ is putting itself in league with other width thieving airlines like Emirates and Air France/KLM.

In other words, it isn't a step up for those NOT in skycouches.

Secondly, it looks like arm rests will finally be able to be folded fully back between seats, so passengers with a spare seat beside them will be able to stretch out, even if it is not a skycouch.

The Skycouch itself is in the first 11 rows of economy on the window sides only, and appears to involve an extension of the seat base so that a flat couch surface can be established across three seats. It wont be available in the middle three seats, presumably because there is no convenient surface for passengers to rest their heads. Clearly the ability to do this is a step change in flying economy class, because it will allow passengers to fly in a Z position (it wont be long enough to be fully stretched unless you're quite short).

So who might be able to do this? Well it is clear that it is aimed at couples who buy two economy seats, and can pay half price for the third seat. Whether individual travellers can do the same is a good question, although it would be cheaper to buy premium economy seats, the question is whether it is better to get the flat surface than the reclined one of premium economy.

For couples this makes a serious difference, for a premium that is a fraction of paying for both to go premium economy, let alone business premier, they will be able to lie flat. Compared with the small recline available in economy usually, this is a different world for most tourists. For those travelling together who aren't so "intimate" it might be less compelling.

NZ has anticipated the biggest risk of the whole idea - the mile high club. The press release states:

"For those who choose, the days of sitting in economy and yearning to lie down and sleep are gone. The dream is now a reality, one that you can even share with a travelling companion - just keep your clothes on thanks!"

The big question will be whether enough will do that to justify setting aside such seats. If they get filled up regularly, it will have made a difference, as long as the pricing makes it more profitable than the average loading across three seats.

Air NZ will be keen to avoid it cannabilising revenue in the front cabins. I suspect that is why exact details on pricing, and whether Airpoints upgrades might include this option, will wait until April 2010.

Seat recline is the industry standard 6", without hard shell designs it will encroach somewhat on the skycouch area.

So in summary, for couples willing to pay this product offers a seriously improved alternative that puts Air NZ beyond all others in economy. For everyone else, it is a small step backwards, although other product improvements (entertainment, catering) are positive.

It is worth noting there remains nothing equivalent to NZ's Space +, which is available on the 767 and A320 fleet.

It is fair to say NZ has successfully generated enough hype and publicity about its new cabin to offset the negativity, but don't forget, a maximum of 44 people will benefit from the Skycouches. 180 will be getting less width and legroom that they do today on the 747s.

Verdict: The Skycouch has to be a winner in attracting business, differentiating the product and increasing yields. I suspect it will take couples business away from premium economy, as a flat surface for two is better than reclining for two. For everyone else, it wont make much of a difference, but if you wanted legroom and seat width, it will be tighter. A for Skycouch a D for everyone else.

Air NZ's new product - the business case

2010-01-26T10:03:00.004Z

With the coming arrival of the Boeing 777-300ER (77W in industry shorthand) to replace the increasingly dated and fuel thirsty Boeing 747-400 fleet (average age 15 years), Air NZ decided to significantly refresh its long haul product. The five new 77W will operate on the Auckland-LA-London route, and also provide extra capacity for other flights to LA, San Francisco and Vancouver. If British tourists start returning to NZ, the Auckland-Hong Kong-London route may also get them in due course.

Air NZ has also said it would retrofit its smaller Boeing 777-200ER fleet with similar products, and it is likely the Boeing 787s will get something similar again. However, the timeframes for them (and the likelihood they will operate on some medium haul routes) will mean that is less certain.

Air NZ is the market leader on all of its long haul routes bar one (Hong Kong), but to be fair there aren’t many long haul routes and competition on them varies considerably.

By far the most competitive route is Auckland to London, as the various options to travel that route are wide ranging depending on the transit airport and the number of stops travellers will tolerate.

For one stop service to London Air NZ has the following competitors:
- Cathay Pacific
- Korean Airlines
- Malaysian Airlines
- Singapore Airlines
- Thai Airways and;
- arguably Qantas/BA (via LA, although this transfer requires offloading bags and checking them back in, which is far more than the Air NZ route via LA requires).

For two stop there are also:
- Qantas/BA (codesharing on each others flights via Melbourne, Sydney then Bangkok, Singapore or Hong Kong);
- Emirates (via Australia and Dubai)

If you’re game you can go three stop with Royal Brunei, and there are various other permutations involving codeshares with different carriers.

Air NZ has one competitor on two routes (Hong Kong and LA with Cathay and Qantas respectively), but none on direct flights to San Francisco, Vancouver, Tokyo, Osaka, Shanghai or Beijing.

That’s it. So Air NZ simply has to be better than Qantas and Cathay on the one hand, and then seriously differentiate itself from the rest. Of the rest, Singapore and Emirates compete on quality, although Emirates has significant product inconsistency between planes and is a two stop route to Europe (although has the advantage of many different destinations in Europe through Dubai). Korean, Malaysian and Thai price themselves to be cheap, although all are quite good airlines.

So for the one stop premium end of the market, NZ has to look at Cathay and Singapore Airlines and do better. It has dominated the premium economy market (only Qantas offers an option to LA and only recently), but in economy it simply can’t compete on price, so is to compete on quality. With new seats and new catering options, there is little doubt it is testing, a rather small market, for some game changing ideas. Given Air NZ’s small fleet, and the timeliness of the fleet replacement, it is in a position to try out such new products on some of the longest airline routes in the world, with relatively low exposure to capital and risk.

The question will be whether it sets the bar for others to follow. If it is highly successful, it will prove lucrative not only on NZ focused routes, but the highly competitive London-Hong Kong and London-LA routes, where fares charged are almost as high (and in premium classes sometimes higher) than London to NZ. If it can make both of these routes serious money spinners, and licence the updated products to sell to other carriers, it will have shown a level of innovation and business acumen rarely seen in state owned airlines – with perhaps the obvious exception of Singapore Airlines.

It's worth noting these comparisons:

Air NZ current 747 configuration
Business Premier 46 seats (1-2-1 lower deck, 1-1 nose, 1-1 upper deck)
Premium Economy 39 seats (3-2 upper deck, 2 on sides lower deck)
Economy 294 seats (3-4-3 configuration)
TOTAL 379 seats

Air NZ current 777-200ER configuration

Business Premier 26 seats (1-2-1)
Premium Economy 36 seats (3-3-3)
Economy 242 seats (3-3-3)
TOTAL 304 seats

Air NZ new 777-300ER configuration

Business Premier 44 seats (1-2-1)
Premium Economy 50 seats (2-2-2)
Economy 246 seats (including 66 able to be converted into 22 skycouches) (3-4-3)
TOTAL 340 seats

UPDATE:

Worth noting here are some images of the internal configuration.

The LOPA (Layout Of Passenger Accommodation) shows business premier as usual, but premium economy in a staggered arrangements by the windows offering more privacy. Economy is confirmed to be in a 3-4-3 arrangement. The latter is rather unfortunate.

ANA is the current leader across all classes

2010-01-25T15:07:00.002Z

On the eve of Air New Zealand announcing apparently groundbreaking new long haul products, and JAL going bankrupt, it is worth noting the airline I think has the most consistently good products across all classes.

Japan's second carrier - ANA

A first class product that competes well with all, perhaps only surpassed by the Singapore Airlines Suites on the A380.

A business class product that i think is second to none.

Premium economy with fixed shell seat backs and which is only surpassed by BMI using old deep recline business class seats.

Economy class with fixed shell seat backs and 34" seat pitch (which is only matched by Air NZ on 747s, Thai and Malaysian for seat pitch, but not seat design).

Mexicana joins One World alliance

2009-11-11T12:22:00.002Z

Mexicana's entry into One World adds significantly to the One World alliance's presence in Latin America, and adds another carrier for One World frequent flyer members to earn status on.

Mexicana's route network includes extensive domestic destinations, 15 airports in the USA, 5 in Canada, as well as flying to Cuba, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Panama, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Venezuela in the Americas. Combined with Iberia and LAN (Chile), the One World alliance is clearly the lead in Latin America, making a forthcoming merger between BA and Iberia all the more lucrative in tapping these emerging markets.

Its two long haul destinations are Madrid and London Gatwick. It operates at a standard of service akin to US carriers, with long haul business class with reclining seats.

ANA significantly upgrades all classes

2009-11-11T11:57:00.003Z

Japan's "number two" carrier ANA has decided to take a significant leap forward of the bedraggled JAL and its rivals by announcing a major upgrade of all long haul classes, in ways that should mean others take some notice.

The announcement initially affects routes flown by ANA's new Boeing 777-300ERs, but should ultimately see a major upgrade on all long haul routes.

ANA does not have an extensive long haul network, flying to six cities in the USA, London Heathrow, Frankfurt and Paris, with other international routes better seen as medium haul as far as India and Singapore.

What do the upgrades mean? Well it is all described on ANA's website here

However in summary it means new seats in all four classes which have the following key features:

- Economy Class seat pitch to increase from 31 to 34 inches, putting it up there with others that have this standard, such as Air NZ, Thai and Malaysian. This is combined with a fixed back design so the seat does not recline into the passenger behind, and a 10.6 inch AVOD screen.
- Premium Economy Class seat pitch to increase from 38 to 42 inches, putting it alongside Qantas and only behind BMI in roominess in this class. A 12 inch AVOD screen and privacy dividers are both best in class. This now looks like business class was 20 years ago.
- Business Class finally goes fully flat (current product is angled flat) facing forward with a staggered design that means all seats have aisle access. Those at the sides are single seats with substantial tables to the side. Preferring to use the additional room for table and storage spaces rather than just seat width, as Singapore Airlines does. With a 17 inch AVOD screen.
- First Class has a semi-cabin suite design, with sliding doors, plenty of storage and 23 inch AVOD screen. This looks similar but larger to suites used on some planes of Emirates, Etihad and Swiss.

All in all, this is a substantial upgrade. With ANA being up with the best in all classes and with what is in my view, the best economy and business class seats on the market, it will easily give JAL, Cathay, Singapore, Emirates and other carriers serious competition on quality. Only BMI (which does not fly on any competing route) excels ANA in premium economy (using old business class seats) and Singapore Airlines with the Suites on A380s only.

Just to show the recession does not mean a lack of investment in new onboard products.

US airways shows another reason it is awful

2009-02-24T16:26:00.002Z

While US Airways deserves to be congratulated for eliminating beverage charges on domestic US flights after a period of a year charging for drinks, its attitude about an improvement in cabin atmosphere is telling.

Flightglobal reported US Airways CEO Doug Parker saying "the programme was very successful. What we didn't know at the time, but later experienced, was that the cabin atmosphere would also improve with fewer carts in the aisles and shorter lines to the lavatories".

Yes, shorter lines to the lavatories because of dehydration.

I've never flown US Airways, and nothing I have heard about the airline in recent years gives me cause to change that.

Farewell Silverjet

2008-06-01T17:22:00.002Z

There is enough coverage of this already, but essentially Silverjet has been crippled by the rising cost of fuel, and the unwillingness of investors to throw money into the airline industry at a time of recession. The supply of cheap(in price and quality) business class seats to New York also increased from 1 April when the limits on the numbers of US airlines that could fly Heathrow to the USA were lifted, and Delta and Continental stepped in. They benefit from large domestic feeder networks in the USA (and linkages with Skyteam airlines Air France, KLM and Alitalia). Silverjet had no feeders.

Maxjet, EOS and Silverjet were all three all business class airlines flying from London (Stansted the first two and Luton for Silverjet) to New York (Dubai also for Silverjet). L'Avion remains flying from Paris to NY, and both Lufthansa and Singapore Airlines operate all business class flights of their own (and BA will be doing so from next year). The business model isn't wrong, it's just the airline business is difficult, requires network economics, and access to the most lucrative airports - in that respect, all three startups lacked the capital to fight it out in difficult times.

Meanwhile, it's cheap to fly Trans Atlantic in economy, premium economy and business class - still!

Farewell EOS

2008-04-27T23:53:00.004Z

Undoubtedly the best of the business class only airlines has folded, with the bankruptcy of EOS reported in ABTN.

EOS flew 7 Boeing 757s in a 48 seat only configuration between London Stansted and New York JFK. It was losing money, but at relatively modest levels. It appears that it has failed to raise adequate capital to keep operating, and given the financial credit crunch, reductions in staff and bonuses in the City of London, it was going to be difficult. Virgin Atlantic's recently upgraded fast checkin and Clubhouse lounge at Heathrow Terminal 3 have also made a big difference to that airline's product, and BA's services to NYC have not (yet?) been seriously hit by Terminal 5's problems, as they remain at Terminal 4 (with recently upgraded Club World seating).

It would be nice if BA's Open Skies bought up EOS's rather nicely appointed 757s. However, it is a shame to lose the only one of the all business class carriers that actually had seats that rivalled BA and Virgin Atlantic's business class products. Silverjet's sloping lie flat seats are closer to what American Airlines offers, albeit with a far better soft product and on the ground product.

Maxjet was squeezed at the budget end, as it essentially competed with premium economy. EOS was squeezed at the premium end, not having connections and without the frequent flyer benefits that BA and Virgin Atlantic can offer. It appears that an era of all premium travel is changing from being led by independent operators to being led by the likes of Lufthansa and BA.

BA launches "Open Skies" website

2008-03-18T19:21:00.003Z

In response to the opportunities presented by the opening up of international airline flights between the EU and the USA, British Airways is launching a wholly owned subsidiary - Open Skies - to fly between continental Europe (Paris at least, but also possibly Amsterdam and Frankfurt) and the USA (New York JFK is the priority). Open Skies will not be an all business class airline like EOS, Silverjet and L'Avion. All the details are on its website which shows it will have business, premium economy and economy class, all on Boeing 757s.

Its economy class looks nothing special (right). However it will only have 5 rows at the back, so it wont be a plane dominated by the back seats. It will be a standard 3-3 configuration.

Premium economy with a 2-2 configuration and a 52" seat pitch (far superior to premium economy on current BA or Virgin Atlantic flights, but akin to BMI's) will be filling a niche, since premium economy is virtually unknown on most airlines in continental Europe (and from the USA). 28 seats in premium economy means seven rows, and frankly with seats like these, BA's premium economy is better than what some airlines offer across the Atlantic - certainly with few exceptions, these are at least as good as the seats in business class for most US airlines.

However, the primary point of this airline is to offer BA's fully flat bed business class. With the exception of United on one route, no airlines offer this between continental Europe and the USA. BA can beat Air France, Lufthansa, KLM and others. The business class offering is to use the old BA Club World seats that are being replaced by the redesigned New Club World seats on all of the 747s and 777. The seats are being refurbished and reused, but are still very good.

So here is hoping BA can make this fly. It should be able to offer a compelling product - fully lie flat seats, a premium economy that is like 1990s business class and a small economy class cabin.

Singapore Airlines starts A380 services to London Heathrow

2008-03-18T15:45:00.004Z

Today the first commercial Airbus A380 flight arrived at London Heathrow with Singapore Airlines starting a daily service between Heathrow and Singapore with the A380.
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Meanwhile Reuters reports the next route to get the A380 is Singapore to Tokyo.
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This brings the A380 destinations to three, with Sydney of course being the original. While in theory one could fly all the way from Sydney to London and back by A380, the truth is that the best connections with Singapore Airlines don't allow that. Singapore Airlines has three flights a day between Heathrow and Singapore, and the same between Singapore and Sydney, but only one flight on each route is by A380 (Singapore Airlines only has 3 of the planes at the moment).

Singapore Airline's schedule for the A380 to and from London Heathrow will settle down as follows:

From 30 March:

SIN-LHR Depart 11.30pm- arrive 5.55am

LHR-SIN Depart 11.55am- arrive 7.45am
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The Sydney route schedule from 30 March (until summer time ends in April) is:

SIN-SYD Depart 8.35pm- arrive 6.55am

SYD-SIN Depart 9.05am- arrive 2.20pm

but check Singapore Airlines website for details

Qantas upgrades New Zealand domestic services too

2008-03-17T17:37:00.004Z

In response to Air NZ, Qantas has also decided to target the premium market on domestic services. In October 2007 it announced it would introduce its "Cityflyer" brand, which it uses in Australia, to revitalise its profile in the NZ domestic market, a market that some thought it might vacate given the arrival of Pacific Blue, and insider knowledge that indicates it has always lost money on NZ domestic routes.

Qantas has launched its upgraded service. It is catching up with Air NZ introducing self service checkin, online checkin, as well as enhancing on board service with complimentary morning papers and the reintroduction of on board food and drinks services, with a complimentary bar after 4pm.

Qantas is offering:

- Complimentary hot breakfast snack or fresh fruit;

- Complimentary cocktail snacks from 4pm to 7.30pm with free wine, beer and soft drinks;

- Inflight entertainment (audio over headsets and a video programme);

- Minimum 1000 frequent flyer points for every flight, regardless of fare paid.

In addition, Qantas is refurbishing the interior of its Boeing 737s and the domestic Qantas Club lounges at Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, two of which haven't had serious investment since the Ansett days. The Wellington-Christchurch route is also seeing the return of Qantas.

Perhaps the two premiums Qantas offers over Air NZ are frequent flyer points on every flight, and inflight entertainment. The race is on to see how customers react to what is the SECOND generation of quality domestic airline service in New Zealand, and which airlines will be the winners.

Air NZ upgraded domestic service

2008-03-17T17:16:00.002Z

The introduction of Koru Hour by Air NZ on its domestic Boeing 737 services heralds the end of the fully low cost model for its domestic market. It launched Express Class back in 2001 partly to arrest costs, but also to be pro-active competitively against what was seen as the imminent arrival of Pacific Blue.

Express Class saw the airline do away with inflight meals (which were served on all routes with aircraft that had cabin crew) and business class. The public indicated that it preferred paying lower fares than getting food on a short flight, and with the exception of MPs and the occasional super wealthy individuals, business class on domestic flights largely comprised of free upgrades and connections by those to and from long haul international business class flights. I once experienced the absurdity of it all consuming, just, a 3 course hot breakfast from Wellington to Christchurch in domestic business class. Express Class meant that only tea/coffee and mineral water would be offered with a cookie. This looked remarkably like what Air NZ once offered before the arrival of Ansett NZ in the mid 1980s.

Express Class was a stunning success, largely by shifting the entire sales model from travel agents and call centres to the internet. The public could compare fares online and book at minimal cost, and with the added bonus of self service checkin at the airport, it significantly reduced costs for the airline, and improved service. Meanwhile, the cuts in fares dramatically increased demand for domestic air travel. The effect was significant enough that it effectively killed off competition in the form of the Northerner between Wellington and Auckland, and forced bus companies to cut their fares.

However, the premium end of the market has felt somewhat neglected. One of the positive changes was that food in Koru Club lounges was significantly improved, to offset the end of catering on board, but the airline felt the backlash from an announcement late last year that it would be adding a row of seats to its 737 fleet and reducing the leg room in almost all rows to a standard level. With the planned Qantas alliance dead and buried by competition authorities, Air NZ feared that it could face being cherry picked on both sides by Qantas and Pacific Blue.

Pacific Blue's entrance could rival Air NZ for low cost traffic, whereas Qantas was quite capable of appealing to the premium end of the market with upgraded product. Air NZ's decision to adopt Koru Hour is its first step to secure the business market which it largely has to itself. It is an enlightened move.

Koru Hour is described on the website as follows:

All weekday 737 and A320* flights between Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch Dunedin and Queenstown in the mornings before 9am, and evenings between 5pm and 8pm are KoruHour flights. Start the day with great tasting Gravity plunger coffee, OJ, muesli or a muffin and a complimentary newspaper. For evening flights wine, beer and L&P are added to the beverage service and are served with a selection of Kapiti cheese, crackers and grapes.

So in effect, a light breakfast on morning business period flights, and drinks and snacks during the evening. A light snack service is also offered during the day and late.

"During the day, after 8pm, and all weekend, a selection of great tasting snacks are being introduced - healthy dried fruit, savoury Cassava chips and sweet NZ lollies as well as tea, coffee and water."

So what? Well for business travellers, the convenience of a light breakfast on board means a lot, especially those without Koru Club access, and adding some drinks in the evening will add to the product seeming to be better than Pacific Blue's low cost approach. Smart travellers will compare one way fares of all airlines and choose whether to sacrifice service for price, or whether they can get a better deal on Air NZ with better service.

Virgin Blue introduces premium economy

2008-03-17T17:02:00.003Z

After having been launched and touted as a wholly low cost carrier, ABTN reports that Virgin Blue has finally conceded that there is money to be made at the premium end of the market. It has now launched premium economy on Australian domestic services flown by its Boeing 737 fleet. Apparently it will also be extended to its new Embraer 170 and 190 fleet as well.

Premium economy involves priority checkin, lounge access, 32kg baggage allowance and fully flexible and refundable fares - in other words much like business class.

On board the front three rows will have the middle seats blocked out so that the 3-3 configuration will be 2-2 with the middle seats able to be folded down to be used as an extra table. Seat pitch is to be increased to 34", similar to the best long haul economy class on airlines like Air NZ, Thai and Malaysian.

It is notable that premium economy is NOT available on Virgin Blue's international counterpart - Pacific Blue as explained on the website description of the 737 seating.

Good for Virgin Blue, and this clearly is some competition for Qantas for the high end corporate market. Virgin Blue can provide fully flexible fares cheaper than Qantas on domestic business class, but still offer more legroom and width than standard economy.

Meanwhile, it is worth noting Qantas has upped its games on domestic Australian services, with new separate Business lounges adjacent to Qantas Club exclusively for business class travellers and top tier frequent flyers (Qantas Platinum, One World Emerald), with enhanced facilities. With short haul international style seats and full hot meal service, Qantas has the premium edge, but Virgin Blue may have a value advantage.

BA business class from City Airport?

2008-03-03T21:15:00.003Z

BA has proposed flying Airbus A318 aircraft (which it doesn't yet have) from London CITY Airport to New York (probably JFK) in an all club class configuration. These flights are widely expected to stop at Shannon airport westbound (as the A318 couldn't have enough range with the weight restrictions applying at LCY to make the trip) to refuel, but fly non stop on the return leg.

Now this does have three possible appealing qualities:

1. Avoiding Heathrow. Despite the purported improvements to be brought in weeks by Terminal 5, it is still easily a 45 minute-1 hour trip from the City to Heathrow, with a minimum 1 hour checkin at best. City airport is less time to reach with shorter check in thresholds (BA proposes 15 minutes!). Essentially an easier airport all round.
2. More pleasant flight. A small all business class plane will quickly fill, disembark and luggage will come off it quicker too. With all business class there should be less bewildered tourists to have to worry about holding the flight up.
3. Westbound avoiding US immigration/customs. Now this is a trickier one. Shannon airport has full US immigration/customs facilities, so offers travellers the prospect of clearing US entry requirements at a relatively quiet airport before reaching NYC (where arrival could be treated as a domestic entry). How this works in practice is another thing, but it could prove to be worth the hassle of early disembarkation.

Mark Frary at the Times thinks it could be a great idea.

Delta airlines to offer yet ANOTHER new business class?

2008-02-20T22:07:00.004Z

Some time ago I posted about Delta improving its international business class product, although still with cradle seats.

More recently Delta was the very first US airline to announce it was introducing fully lie flat seats in business class. These seats will be familiar to those who know the herringbone configuration that Air Canada and Cathay Pacific have introduced (which is a cheaper version of the seats seen on Virgin Atlantic and Air New Zealand). These seats are being fitted to Delta's new Boeing 777-200LR (long range) aircraft and were to be retrofitted onto its entire international 777 fleet.

Now Delta has announced yet another design according to Business Traveller as seen in the image above. This version will be retrofitted to the long haul Boeing 767-400 fleet, in a 1-2-1 configuration (which is clearly superior in width to all other airline 767 configurations in business class which are typically 2-2-2 or at best 2-2-1). It looks like a direct rival to United Airlines, nd BMI, all of which have introduced forward facing fully flat bed business class seats (but none come close to outclassing Singapore Airlines new product).

On top of that the cradle seats are being upgraded for the long haul Boeing 757 fleet!

Delta's press release on the latest Business Elite product (for 767s) is here.

Delta's press release on last Business Elite product announcement (for 777s) is here.

It looks like finally some US airlines are catching up and surpassing the business class products of airlines elsewhere. No continental European airlines have fully lie flat business class seats. Maybe Delta CAN win premium traffic on the trans Atlantic route off of BA and Virgin Atlantic after all?

Air France and KLM to cram them in the back

2008-02-18T18:23:00.004Z

Most airlines flying Boeing 777s equip them in economy class in a 9 abreast configuration, either 3-3-3 or 2-5-2. A handful put in 3-4-3 10 abreast configurations, obviously compromising aisle width and seat width to cram in some more seats.

Business Traveller reports that Air France/KLM has announced its configuration for its new fleet of Boeing 777-300ERs (a common type for replacing older Boeing 747s) and it includes a 10 abreast configuration, not something likely to please economy class travellers. However, airlines well know that most economy class travellers are driven by price - very few know about the aircraft they will fly on and the seating arrangements. Sadly this means that airlines that sacrifice space for seats will still win by selling more seats at lower prices. As Business Traveller reports:

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"This new configuration for the B777 is controversial, because although the B747 and the Airbus A380 also feature ten-across seating, they have wider cabins. A B777 has a width of 5.86 metres, whereas the B747 is 6.10 metres wide. On that basis, the A380’s cabin is positively luxurious, with a width of 6.58 metres."

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Nevertheless, I believe that airline passengers should inform themselves about what is on offer, so I have done a survey, simply using the Seatguru website, as to the width and pitch of airlines with Boeing 777s. Some are willing to reduce width and increase pitch, such as Emirates, although this seems to defeat the purpose somewhat.

9 abreast

BA, Continental, Delta, United - 31" pitch, Thai - 31-33", Air Canada, Air France (except 300ER series), Air New Zealand, Alitalia, American, Cathay Pacific, KLM (200 series only) - 32" pitch, Singapore Airlines - 32", 34" (200ER only), EVA - 33" pitch, Korean - 33-35" pitch, ANA, 34" (200 series) 31" (300 series)
Asiana, Malaysian 34"

10 abreast

BA (some 777s) 31", Austrian 32", Emirates 33-34"

EOS to Dubai

2008-02-18T18:16:00.003Z

The demise of business class only airline MaxJet has seen attention shift to the remaining all business class airlines operating to and from London: Silverjet and EOS.
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Now following Silverjet, EOS the best of the two, is expanding to Dubai. EOS flies from Stansted, whilst Silverjet flies from Luton. However, both now offer compelling alternatives to BA, Virgin Atlantic and Emirates, and both are battling for a market that may only sustain one. Silverjet has 100 seats on a 767, all of an angled lie flat design (similar to what Lufthansa, Air France and Qantas currently use) in a 2-2-2 configuration (like most airlines in business class on a 767). BA’s 767s typically have 180 seats.

EOS has only 48 seats on a 757, in a 2-2 configuration. Continental Airlines long haul 757s typically have 175 seats. EOS has fully lie flat seats, closer in design to the BA, and new generation United Airlines business class lie flat beds.

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Hopefully both will survive, as both offer something easier and faster than what the big carriers offer from Heathrow

Heathrow Terminal 5 and the subsequent changes

2008-02-12T21:53:00.001Z

The big forthcoming airline news in London is the imminent opening of Terminal 5. Terminal 5 promises to be a revolutionary experience for airline travellers going to and from London Heathrow airport. BAA's website has a lot of detail about the terminal, which is supposed to allow for quick checkin, security and a more comfortable, spacious experience for travellers. If it proves to be true, then it will be a boon for Terminal 5's only airline - British Airways. However, following the hype of Terminal 5, there are a whole gamut of changes at Heathrow guaranteed to keep any flyers on their toes.

I have attempted to compile a list of as much as I know that is accurate to date. Happy to have any comments to correct any errors from those who know better about dates and changes. I have listed changes according to airlines below. The changes are primarily by alliance, as the theory is that Terminal 1 becomes the Star Alliance terminal, Terminal 3 the OneWorld terminal, Terminal 4 the Skyteam and all others terminal and Terminal 2 is wound down and demolished to make way for the new Heathrow East Terminal.

British Airways, Iberia and Qantas

On 27 March BA flights that currently operate to and from Terminal 1 will shift to Terminal 5, except flights to and from Spain, and those operated using Boeing 757 aircraft. Terminal 1 currently mainly services BA domestic and European flights, with selected long haul routes.

On 30 April BA flights that currently operate to and from Terminal 4, except flights to and from Australia via Bangkok and Singapore will shift to to Terminal 5, this encompasses almost all BA long haul routes.

On 21 June BA flights to and from Spain, and remaining Boeing 757 operated routes will transfer to Terminal 3. This is because all other OneWorld airlines are progressively consolidating into Terminal 3, and BA codeshares routes to Spain with Iberia. Iberia is shifting from Terminal 2 to Terminal 3 on that date as well.

On 11 October BA flights to and from Australia via Bangkok and Singapore will shift to Terminal 3 as well, for the same reason. Qantas is also shifting from Terminal 4 on the same date.

Remaining OneWorld airlines

All other OneWorld airlines are to consolidate at Terminal 3, which is to get a progressive upgrade after the completion of Terminal 5. American Airlines, Cathay Pacific, JAL and Royal Jordanian are already located there. On 21 June, Finnair will relocate from Terminal 1 to Terminal 3. From 11 October, all OneWorld airlines will be operating from Terminal 3.

Star Alliance

With BA vacating Terminal 1, Star Alliance airlines are intended to move progressively to that terminal, with a major upgrade of the terminal planned over the next 12-18 months. BMI, South African Airways, Asiana and LOT all currently fly to and from Terminal 1. On 29 March US Airways will commence flights to and from Terminal 1.

On 5 May, Air New Zealand and United are both expected to shift from Terminal 3 to Terminal 1.

On 25 October, Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Swiss, TAP Portugal and Croatia Airlines are all expected to shift from Terminal 2 to Terminal 1.

There is no timetable for Air Canada, SAS, Air China, ANA, Thai or Singapore Airlines to vacate Terminal 3 at present. The current understanding is that Singapore Airlines does not plan to shift to Terminal 1, as there are no airbridges at Terminal 1 capable of handling the Airbus A380.

Skyteam airlines

With BA vacating Terminal 4, it too will also get refurbished for a new life being the home of the Skyteam alliance of airlines, plus almost all other airlines unaffiliated with other alliances. Continental Airlines, China Southern Airlines and Northwest Airlines will commence flights from Terminal 4 on 29, 29 and 30 March respectively, with Delta on 26 October, but none of them currently fly to Heathrow. KLM is the only Skyteam airline currently flying to and from Terminal 4.

On 11 October, Korean Air will shift from Terminal 3 to Terminal 4.

On 18 October, Aeroflot, Air France, Alitalia and Czech Airlines will shift from Terminal 2 to Terminal 4.

All other airlines

Well there is a enormous range of changes, but here are some general rules:

On 18 October, all remaining airlines in Terminal 2 that are not OneWorld or Star Alliance will shift to Terminal 4. Terminal 2 will then be closed.

With the exception of Brussels Airlines, all airlines in Terminal 4 not mentioned above remain there. Brussels Airlines shifts to Terminal 3 in October apparently.

Only BA and Finnair are leaving Terminal 1, no other airlines are moving from Terminal 1.

Around half of the non-aligned airlines at Terminal 3 are remaining the rest are going to Terminal 4.

So there you have it. This is subject to change, and with more airlines joining alliances it may mean even more realignments at Heathrow. However, it does mean that there will be new experiences for probably the majority of travellers through the airport, and hopefully for the better. Terminal changes at Heathrow will undoubtedly cause enormous confusion in the next year!

United slowly rolls out new business and first class

2008-02-12T13:00:00.001Z

United Airlines pleasantly surprised its top end paying passengers late last year announcing a new first and business class which includes fully lie flat bed seats in business in a configuration not completely dissimilar to BA. Besides Delta with its diagonal lie flat bed design, no other US based carrier has introduced fully lie flat beds in business class. Details of the upgraded first and business classes are here. This should mean that at least one US carrier has a product that can start to be competitive with European and Asian airlines, as long as its soft product and lounges can also be brought up to scratch.

However the rollout has not been fast. So far only one Boeing 767 and one Boeing 747 have been refurbished, with a second 767 about to be rolled out, and they appear to be concentrated on the Dulles to Frankfurt (IAD-FRA) route, and the occasional domestic US route. However, United will spend the next 18 or so months rolling out the new seats on its long haul 747s, 777s and 767s, with priority on routes to Europe, Asia and Australia (where it has the most serious competition). United says that it plans having 12 767s upgraded by September 2008 and 15 747s upgraded by December. Boeing 777s clearly come last with 50% upgraded by March 2009!

The current United long haul first class seat is reasonable, but the business class is an old fashioned cradle seat, akin to the seats Air NZ now only has on its 767s, and Lufthansa used to have. As I fly United maybe once every couple of years, I look forward to reconsidering it as an airline worth trying on long haul international routes once more, but clearly I'll be looking for 767 flights first.

All BA 747s now equipped with Next Generation New Club World

2008-02-12T12:50:00.001Z

Just to report that according to Flyertalk, all of BA's long haul Boeing 747 fleet is now equipped with the upgraded Club World seating, which is a generation ahead of its then leading edge fully lie flat long haul Club World seats.

What this means is that if you check in advance, you can be sure that flying on a 747 service you will have next generation New Club World.

The Boeing 777s are next to be upgraded, although at present none have been.

New Zealand's first A380 services

2008-02-11T21:10:00.001Z

Business Traveller reports that Emirates will start flying Airbus A380 whalejets to Auckland from February 2009. Apparently flights EK412/EK413 (using Airbus A340s) which currently fly Dubai-Sydney-Christchurch will be redirected through to Auckland, but using new A380s.

It is highly likely these A380s will be in the long haul lower density configuration (Emirates is planning three different A380 layouts, one will be in a high density two class "cram them in" option, probably for shorter flights to South Asia from Dubai). Emirates promises to rival Singapore Airlines in all classes, but we will have to wait and see. One of the biggest problems of Emirates is that it has different products depending on the aircraft. On its Boeing 777s it crams 10 seats to a row, whereas Air NZ, BA and Singapore Airlines fit 9, although it offers greater seat pitch than any of the others in 777s. On its A340s its seat pitch is tight, but it is the standard 8 in a row.

A bigger question is whether Emirates is adding a flight to Auckland, replacing one, or is terminating flights to Christchurch as a result, as it is not clear.

Other airlines flying to NZ that have ordered the A380 are far less likely to fly them to NZ:

- Singapore Airlines flies 777s to Christchurch and Auckland, with a 747 service daily to Auckland. However its latest timetable drops the 747 flight from the middle of the year replacing it with a 777-300ER. It is unlikely SQ will put the A380 on services to NZ;

- Qantas has ordered A380s, but its only large aircraft route nowadays is Melbourne-Auckland-Los Angeles with 747s, partly because most fully laden 747s can't fly non stop Melbourne-LAX.

- Thai, Malaysian, Korean are all highly unlikely to fly A380s to NZ, as none fly their largest aircraft to NZ (747s) now.

Rebirth of airline service blog

2008-02-11T21:03:00.000Z

Finally I have some time to do something about THIS little blog.

I am refreshing it, with the primary intention of reporting on major changes in international airline product standards. This will have a particular bent towards services to and from the UK and to and from Australia and New Zealand, being the countries I am most closely associated with.

The intention is to report on three types of changes:

1. New hard products: Airline seats, new classes (disappearance of classes) and new/upgraded lounges.
2. Major soft product upgrades: Catering, on board service, landside and airside services at airports, inflight entertainment.
3. Updates on rollout, new airlines or closure of airlines, joining of alliances, new aircraft.

So I hope this blog becomes informative and I fully intend to update it as regular as need be.

BA launches New Club World

2006-11-27T14:49:00.001Z

The first airline in the world to introduce a truly lie flat business class seat (horizontal) has now upgraded its seat to be longer and wider, with more privacy.

BA's new club world is easiest seen in the website http://www.newclubworld.com

It is to be rolled out on all of its 747s and 777s in the next 18 months, and is definitely a step forward. From appearances the seats look more comfortable and spacious, and will help given Virgin Atlantic and others a run for their money - though - from appearances, it looks like Singapore Airlines' new business class product will be a more comfortable seat (although remember Singapore Airlines is not yet retrofitting its 747s and current 777s with the new seating).

So there you have it - the second generation of lie flat bed seats, we will see what Virgin Atlantic does in response.

Austrian introduced angled lie flat seats in business and upgrades service

2006-10-28T11:18:00.001Z

Austrian Airlines (Star Alliance) has upgraded its long haul business class seating and service to standards that broadly reflect those of its bigger neighbour airline Lufthansa.

Austrian does not have an extensive long haul network, with flights to the USA, Asia and Australia hubbing at Vienna (although the route to Australia will be discontinued before the end of the year unfortunately - meaning no continental European airlines will now fly to Australia).

The new seats look like being one of the best angled lie flat products around - but again, why bother upgrading to angled lie flat seats when the world's leading airlines are moving to fully lie flat in business class? Similarly, it has two entertainment systems- the Airbus A340s and A330s have an on demand system, while the Boeing 777s and 767s have a looped multichannel system. However, on the bright side Austrian has an excellent reputation for in flight food, claiming six courses in business class. As a part of the experience that is often neglected, Austrian does deserve credit for putting effort into catering.

Singapore Airlines announces major upgrade

2006-10-19T20:01:00.001Z

Well, not to be outdone by Cathay Pacific and concerned it has slipped behind the likes of Virgin Atlantic (49% owned by Singapore Airlines), BA and others in business class (the Singapore Airlines business class Spacebed is an angled lie-flat seat), Singapore Airlines (without question the leading airline in quality in the Star Alliance) has announced significant improvements to all three classes which will be launched with its first new Boeing 777-300ER aircraft in December.

Singapore Airlines was meant to launch the new products as the first airline with the new Airbus A380, but that has been delayed until next year (and apparently is a further improvement on what is below). All new long-haul Singapore Airlines aircraft will have this product, and it is expected that some of the new 777s will be on routes to and from Australia and NZ. I expect within the next year Singapore Airlines will have this new product on all routes that compete with BA, Qantas, Emirates, Cathay Pacific and Lufthansa.

The biggest improvement is in Business Class (above), (no longer Raffles Class), with what is definitely the widest and longest horizontal lie-flat seats in business class ever. The proof will be in the testing, but this looks like quite possible the best business class seat in the world. The seat is 30 inches wide. There is an 15 inch AVOD screen, with 2 USB ports and essentially equipped with a miniPC (with what appears to be an "office suite" of software). The idea being you don't need to take a laptop on board, just a USB stick. Hmmmm fine until you get to the other end! Other details like luggage storage within your seat space, duvet in addition to pillow/blanket. The entertainment system has over 500 CDs and is a further step up from the already excellent Krisworld.

First Class gets a wider longer suite as well. 35 inches wide, it's easily the width of a single bed, with a 23 inch entertainment screen (and the same software/USB ports as the business class seat). This is more a larger version of what Singapore Airlines has now, than a revolutionary step forward, unlike Cathay Pacific which has essentially chosen a bed with an adjacent seat. Nevertheless, both airlines have reputations for impeccable first class service - so the battle is on - only Emirates is a rival in First, and that is the only class Emirates comes close to being competitive in.

Economy Class has also had a spruce up, with seat redesigned to create a little more legroom, a few little compartments for glasses and personal items. A new 10 inch screen, power supply at every seat and, yes, the screen also has a mini-PC with a USB port and "office" software. So a level of computing power at every seat! Nobody can beat that, yet. Blankets and a renewed menu (for all classes) mean Singapore Airlines has evolved economy class, rather than made a big leap forward. It has 32" seat pitch, which is nothing special (Singapore Airlines has bigger seat pitch on its current 777s). Cathay's new seats are a far bigger leap forward.

So there you go, Singapore Airlines has lifted the bar. Easily the best Business Class, excellent First Class and highly competitive Economy Class. Time for the rest of the Star Alliance to look to catch up, and I'm looking especially at United - which remains two generations behind.

Cathay Pacific launches major product upgrade

2006-10-14T17:23:00.005Z

Cathay Pacific (One World) has announced a significant upgrade of all three classes as of next year. As an airline that pretty much deserves its five star Skytrax ranking, it is excellent news that it is now moving to be ahead of the game once more with new seats that, at the very least, put it on a par with the best available today.

In First Class (pictured) it is taking a step beyond all other airlines. More space, with a private closet, 17" screen with AVOD. With a longer wider lie flat bed seat, there is a separate side seat so passengers can choose to be seated or lie in a bed. Cathay has always been rated as having one of the best first classes and will be maintaining that status with this new product.

In Business Class, Cathay Pacific, after only introducing angled lie flat seats four years ago has made the jump to horizontal lie flat beds - similar to Air New Zealand. With BA, Virgin Atlantic, South African Airways, Air NZ, Iberia, LAN Chile and now Cathay going horizontal, it is clear that this IS the new standard. Cathay has essentially bought seats similar to Air NZ's new Business Premier class, except unlike Air NZ/Virgin Atlantic the seat does NOT flip over for a mattress side, but reclines fully flat with one surface. With Air NZ and Virgin Atlantic having similar seats between London and Hong Kong, and BA with its own fully lie flat product, the differences between seating for the airlines are small - it will be more about service. In addition, a 15" monitor has been installed with full AVOD.

Economy Class does not go untouched, in fact Cathay can be said to have led the way now with its new economy class seats. It needs it, it only gets a 3 star ranking with Skytrax overall in economy mainly because of the seating and catering. The seats recline within a shell, so you no longer have economy class seats reclining back into the row behind. This means more room and no complaints when you do recline. The seat pocket is now below the seat so there is a bit more room. In essence Cathay has taken a seat which does the most with the limited space in economy. I'd like to know if Cathay still uses the 32" seat pitch, which frankly is only a suitable standard for regional international routes, not long haul. Nevertheless, this is a step forward that is world leading, with a 9" monitor and AVOD - this gives Cathay one of the best economy class seats in the world. The only question is whether with the seat bottom sliding forward during recline that this costs you legroom (although removal of the seat pocket partly compensates). It will be interesting to see what passengers think.

All of this puts Cathay Pacific undoubtedly at the top of OneWorld alliance in terms of quality, and gives something for BA and Qantas especially to aspire to (Qantas in particular is lacklustre in economy and first class).

bmi upgrades business class - to remain below BA and Virgin Atlantic

2006-10-14T17:23:00.004Z

bmi, the Star Alliance carrier of the UK, which primarily is a low-cost carrier around Europe, also provides long haul services to North America and the Middle East. It has a 3 star Skytrax ranking, and deserves it. Its long haul business class has 4 stars and has a good reputation for service, but still has the reclining "cradle" seats that were the standard of the late 1990s - the type that is still standard on most US airlines and on regional business class in Asia/Australasia.

By June 2007 it will have new business class seats on its Airbus A330 aircraft with 80" seat pitch (bmi has no first class), which is generous (similar to first class on other airlines). The seats are angled lie flat seats very similar to the current Singapore Airlines Spacebed. It is about time, but with BA and Virgin Atlantic both having had horizontal lie flat seats in business class for some years - bmi is still behind the ball. It's an improvement and Star Alliance frequent flyers will welcome it - but given that Cathay Pacific has just announced new business class seats that REPLACE seats like this, bmi is a generation behind.

Delta Airlines becomes first US carrier to introduce lie flat beds in business

2006-10-14T17:23:00.003Z

Finally!! Northwest was first with angled lie flat business class a couple of years ago, American announced a few months ago it would do the same. United and Continental still have long haul international business class seats that are two generations behind airlines like BA, Virgin Atlantic, Air NZ, Iberia and soon Cathay Pacific. Delta (in the Skyteam alliance) has leap frogged the angled lie flat design and gone for gold - and is acquiring similar seats to Virgin Atlantic, Air NZ and Cathay with horizontal lie flat angled business class seats.

Starting with its brand new Boeing 777LRs, they will also be installed on the rest of the international 777 fleet with full conversion achieved by 2010. Delta, while ranked 3 star overall (like other US airlines), is ranked 4 stars in international business class and has aimed to upgrade service and catering.

So kudos to Delta for making the leap, it could well have a business class of world standard next year and be outside the reputation that international business class travellers hold "all US airlines are crap". It also helps to lift the standards of the Skyteam Alliance, which frankly is the poor cousin in quality terms among the three main airline alliances.

LAN introduces flat beds in business and new economy class

2006-07-27T16:17:00.001Z

LAN – OneWorld – Chile

LAN of Chile has started introduced a new Premium Business Class product on its Boeing 767-300 fleet that operate long haul flights to North America and within South America.
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“ This will incorporate the new full-flat, 180-degree recline seats, which are only available from a select group of airlines in the world, offering passengers greater comfort for sleeping in a completely full-flat horizontal position. Down comforters and soft pillows create a true bed experience, and dividing panels between seats offer maximum privacy during the flight.”
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Interiors and inflight entertainment have also been upgraded:
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“The inflight entertainment also reaches a superior level with larger 15.4-inch individual video monitors that offer high definition and widescreen, and an updated audio-visual content with an audio and video on demand system that allows passengers to choose from eight films and 20 short programs with the ability to fast-forward, rewind or pause selected films. In addition, there are 14 interactive video games and a true musical library with 100 CDs to choose from and enjoy with quality digital sound from the latest generation in advanced noise-canceling headsets that notably reduce the external noises of the cabin, producing a pleasant sensation of privacy.The aircraft interior has also been modified, offering a larger space and improved lighting. Other elements of the new service, including such items as dishes, glasses and serving trays, among others, have been redesigned with the new modern and elegant style consistent with the new Premium Business service.”

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All in all, this should lift LAN’s Business Class product above that of all current carriers in North and South America. It is great to see another airline introducing truly lie flat seats in business, not angled flat seats like others have been introducing. This does mean LAN is leaping ahead of most of its competition. Hopefully it will justify a rating increase from 3 stars soon.

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Economy Class is also being upgraded with new seats and seatback video screens:

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“This transformation of the Boeing 767-300 fleet also includes improvements in economy class with the objective of making a more pleasant travel experience. It includes new seats with larger individual video monitors with high definition and widescreen in each seatback. Passengers are now able to directly choose from various audio and video on demand programming options using an easy touch screen menu or remote control. The new economy seats also have an increased recline with forward-sliding cushions that offer a greater sense of comfort. Adjustable headrests, as well as increased space for personal carry-on items and cup holders at each seat, and new dishes, carpeting and other items such as pillows and blankets are also available.”

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Hopefully, LAN will extend this to other long haul aircraft, such as the Airbus A340s for flights to New Zealand/Australia and Madrid. Nevertheless, LAN has definitely positioned itself as the premier South American airline, and this indicates that it is shifting from having a first and business class, to having a more upmarket business class for premier travellers.

More details here

and an interactive display of the new business and economy classes is here.

Iberia upgrades European and domestic fleet interiors

2006-07-27T15:54:00.001Z

Iberia - OneWorld - Spain

Iberia has already ordered 79 new Airbus A318, A319, A320 and A321 aircraft to modernise its European and domestic services, and will be refurbishing its remaining short to medium haul Airbuses. The upgrade is described below:
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“An array of grey hues is used for carpeting, curtains, and seats, which are upholstered in leather of the highest quality for maximum comfort, and doubles-stitched into rounded forms. The seat frames are also of new design, and will both enhance comfort and optimise the use of cabin space. The seat backs are more curved and lighter, and are more distant from the knees of the passengers in the row behind. The magazine pouch is positioned high on the seat backs, and there is additional free space under the seats, allowing the passengers behind to extend their legs. "

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Iberia’s reputation in economy class is not good, and it is ranked as a 3 star airline by Skytrax. This, along with an upgrade of food on sale for European/domestic flights should improve its reputation.

Finnair upgrades long haul business class to angled lie flat seats

2006-07-27T14:35:00.001Z

Finnair - OneWorld - Finland

Finnair has announced that it has installed new angled lie-flat business class seats on all of its long haul aircraft (Boeing MD-11s and Airbus A340s) . Finnair reports:
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With the lie-flat seats, the space between seats will increase from the current 127 cm/50 in. to 160 cm/63 in. – the most comfortable seat in its class. The new seats provide more privacy for rest and work. Passengers can stretch out and lie flat – even if they are 2 metres/6 foot 7 in. tall.
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The seats look, with privacy screens and the rest, to be just like most other angled lie-flat seats being installed by other major European airlines, like Lufthansa and Scandinavian. It stops Finnair slipping behind, and at least the guarantee that all long haul flights will now have the new seats is positive.

This finally brings Finnair up to international standards and has been matched by an increase in traffic. It has a 3 star Skytrax rating overall, including for long haul business class. This ought to make a difference to an airline that appears to be trying to bring its standards up to par with most of its competitors.

American Airlines upgrades international business class with angled lie-flat seats

2006-07-09T14:47:00.001Z

American is installing new angled-lie flat seats on its Boeing 767-300 aircraft by early 2007, followed by its Boeing 777s from 2007. American is also installing a fully AVOD entertainment system for business class.

Detail in this press release and on its website.

In short, American is finally coming up to the standards that many international airlines (e.g. Singapore, Cathay) have had for four to five years. This is a positive step forward and it can only be hoped that the AVOD system extends to all classes. That would definitely put American ahead of other US carriers. However, by the time it has done so, many of those airlines will already be into their next generation of seating.

American Airlines upgrades premium US domestic transcontinental food service

2006-07-09T14:27:00.001Z

American Airlines - OneWorld - USA

American Airlines has upgraded the food service on major US transcontinental routes and some international routes for business and first class passengers, as well as expanding its economy class “purchase on board scheme”:

Throughout First and Business Class, dining and beverage options are complimentary. New transcontinental dinner entrees in First Class include beef filet with (Japanese) miso demi-glace and cilantro potatoes; salmon with sweet potatoes and haricot vert carrot medley; and grilled chicken breast with vegetable canneloni and broccolini. Business Class passengers will feast on dinner entrees including tortellini with red roasted peppers; beef fillet with madiera demi, augratin potatoes and asparagus; and beef torta roma with spinach gnocchi and a mushroom beef sauce. In addition to the ever-popular ice cream sundaes, grand marnier fruit has been added as a First Class dessert option, and seasonal fresh fruit as a Business Class dessert option. The new lunch menu features soups, salads and sandwiches. Examples of the new soups include navy bean with portobello mushrooms, asiago with garlic croutons, cream of chicken with wild rice and corn chowder with red peppers. Sandwich choices consist of a roast beef au jus or roasted chicken. The breakfast menu features morning favorites such as a cheese vegetable omelet with fire roasted turkey sausage, basil pesto potato wedges and fire roasted pepper sauce; and a three-cheese omelet with saffron onions and potato sausage hash. In addition, for late-night snackers, fruit and cheese and antipasto plates are among the new offerings.

Competition at the premium end of the US domestic market is clearly intensifying much as competition has for price conscious passengers. United’s P.S. premium service has motivated American to differentiate itself by food. Clearly there is a market for high quality service within the US - this appears to be a higher priority than service on international routes.

Aer Lingus to leave OneWorld alliance

2006-07-09T14:17:00.000Z

Aer Lingus - OneWorld - Republic of Ireland

Due to Aer Lingus becoming a low cost carrier for most of its business, Aer Lingus has decided to withdraw from the OneWorld alliance. OneWorld as a full service carrier alliance obviously cost too much for Aer Lingus to continue supporting. Aer Lingus is seeking bilateral relationships with OneWorld carriers, but Aer Lingus frequent flyer points will not contribute to OneWorld frequent flyer tier status. The timing for the departure from OneWorld has yet to be announced.

Northwest retires DC-10s, improved product on A330s

2006-07-08T23:14:00.001Z

Northwest – Skyteam – USA

Northwest will phase out its DC-10s by 2007. Northwest Airlines, one of the largest remaining operators of the long out of manufacture, McDonnell Douglas DC-10, is finally to retire its remaining aircraft in favour of Airbus A330s and Boeing 747-400s.

The A330 will offer the following according to Northwest:

Northwest’s A330s are equipped with the airline’s World Business Class lie-flat seats, new seats in coach class, and an in-flight entertainment system in both cabins that Northwest was the first North American airline to offer.

The fully interactive in-flight entertainment system offers a wide variety of music, movies, short subject programs, games, shopping and in-flight information, all “on demand,” giving customers the freedom and flexibility to start, pause or stop at any time. The gateway to all of these features is a convenient retractable controller, making it easy to access from any sitting position, as opposed to stationary controllers fixed on armrests.

In World Business Class, Northwest customers are able to view any of these features on a 10.4 inch/26.4 centimeter video screen, 50 percent larger in size than the screens found in business class seats on other U.S. airlines, and a number of international airlines. Northwest customers traveling in coach class are able to view any of these features on a personal video screen in the back of the seat in front of them.

World Business Class travelers enjoy an array of features including a seat that reclines 176 degrees (more recline than other U.S. airline), a leather-wrapped privacy canopy, 60 inches of space between seats, 110-volt personal laptop computer power, cycling lumbar support, a six-way adjustable headrest that slides along a track so it can be adjusted to a traveler’s individual height, and four seat-back storage pockets.

Northwest’s A330s also feature a completely new coach class seat, offered in a two-seat, aisle, four-seat, aisle, two-seat configuration throughout much of the aircraft. As a result, no seat is more than one seat away from an aisle. The new coach seat features a “winged” headrest, with bendable sides, allowing the customer to rest their head or sleep toward the side of the seat. "

An airline with a less than glorious reputation will have AVOD, near lie flat business class seats (which it did introduce a couple of years ago) and new economy class seating which sounds like what some major international airlines introduced about a decade ago.

Clearly the airline is somewhat healthier than it has been, and this will be a step forward having a consistently better service than most other US airlines. Northwest was the first to introduce (angled) lie-flat seats among North American carriers, but it will still take more for it to be ranked better than 3 stars.

Korean Air starts live TV on board long haul flights

2006-07-08T23:05:00.001Z

Korean Air – Skyteam – Republic of Korea

Korean Air has started live TV broadcasts to passengers on long haul international flights. The service is available on all flights with the Connexions high speed internet service, which will ultimately include all Korean Air long haul Boeing 747 and 777 aircraft by 2007. Four channels are being provided – BBC World, CNBC/MSNBC, Euronews and Eurosport. They are accessed only through passengers’ laptops logged into the Connexions service.

Korean Air introduces amenity kits for long haul economy class

2006-07-08T22:59:00.001Z

Korean Air – Skyteam – Republic of Korea

Korean Air has started supplying an inflight amenity kit for long haul economy class passengers on routes to Oceania, North America, the Middle East and Europe.

Economy class passengers will receive a complimentary kit consisting of a soft eyeshade, knitted socks and dental set in a convenient travel pouch. The service is designed to increase cabin convenience with items that are known to increase inflight comfort.

CSA upgrading long haul business class

2006-07-08T22:51:00.001Z

CSA Czech Airlines – Skyteam – Czech Republic

CSA has announced an upgrade of its long haul international business class service. Its Airbus A310 fleet is to be refurbished with new seats (wider for a 2-2-2 rather than 2-3-2 configuration), PC power sockets and a new inflight entertainment system. The system will be fully introduced by June 2007, although it is unclear what sort of seats are being acquired or the type of entertainment system. With a current Skytrax ranking of 2 stars for longhaul business class, despite an overall 3 star ranking, it is hoped that CSA can bring its international business class service offering to 3 star or beyond.

CSA improves passenger comfort on long haul flights

CSA Czech Airlines open new Crystal Lounge at Prague

2006-07-08T22:46:00.001Z

CSA Czech Airlines – Skyteam – Czech Republic

CSA Czech Airlines has opened a new lounge at Terminal 2 in its homebase airport, Prague Ruzyne. The lounge is for business class travellers of CSA Czech Airlines, and Skyteam airline travellers at the Terminal, as well as top tier frequent flyers.

There are three separate areas in the lounge: relaxation, café and conference zone. While waiting for their flights, passengers can relax in comfortable, spacious armchairs and take advantage of privacy in the relaxation zone. Eight computer stations with the Internet facilities, 19 connections for lap-tops and WI-FI are also available. Refreshments served in the lounge depend on the time of the day and include fresh bakery products, vegetable and fruit salads and open sandwiches.

Skyteam agrees to co-locate to London Heathrow Terminal 4

2006-07-08T22:33:00.001Z

All the Skyteam airlines that fly into Heathrow have agreed to progressively shift their terminal operations from Terminals 2 and 3 to more integrated operations at Terminal 4 by 2008. This will facilitate easier connections between the airlines, and includes some upgrade of service areas and checkins. It will follow BA’s shift of its major international operations from Terminal 4 to the new Terminal 5, which will provide ample capacity for all Skyteam airlines to use Terminal 4. In addition, it will coincide with the closure and demolition of Terminal 2 (which is to make way for expansions of Terminals 1 and 3). While Heathrow is not a base for any of the Skyteam airlines, and none of the Skyteam US carriers are currently permitted to fly to Heathrow, this will increase the attractiveness of the airport for international connections for Skyteam frequent flyers.

KLM press release

Delta upgrades international economy and business class service

2006-07-07T22:18:00.001Z

Delta Airlines - Skyteam - USA

In a rare move among airlines worldwide, as airlines focus on economy for economy class passengers, Delta has announced an upgrade of its international coach class service:

"Beginning July 1, customers seated in the coach cabin on most of Delta’s international flights will receive printed menus; a complimentary choice of cocktail, including the new Mile High Mojito or Mango Kiss, beer or wine during the main in-flight meal service; and a mid-flight snack. Later this fall Delta will provide coach customers with their own personal amenity kit that will include eyeshades and ear plugs for a more relaxing flight. Also, more customers are already enjoying more comfortable all-leather seats in coach class as the airline continues refurbishing its international aircraft interiors."

So a catering upgrade and amenity kit, with refurbished seats. A tremendous step forward, which hopefully other US carriers will follow. The poor reputation of US carrier international economy class, with alcoholic drinks being charged for, might be taking a tentative step forward. Delta detailed the new midflight snack:

Delta’s new mid-flight snack service will offer customers:
On flights from the United States to Europe, a choice of grilled cheese crackers, peanuts, Biscoff cookies and Sunchips®;
On flights from Europe to the United States, a vanilla ice cream cup; and
On flights to and from India, a choice of Toblerone chocolates, shortbread cookies, nuts or snack mix

Previously Delta announced an upgrade of Business Elite Class (Delta has no international first class product) as follows:

These in-flight upgrades complement Delta’s introduction of an improved international BusinessElite® experience with more comfortable all-leather seats, digital on-demand entertainment at every seat, and a new personal dining experience on select international flights created exclusively for BusinessElite customers by celebrity chef Michelle Bernstein. In addition, all international customers can check-in using new self-service kiosk technology with passport scanning capability at Delta’s Atlanta, Cincinnati and New York-JFK international gateways.

Delta's BusinessElite seats remain cradle seats of the 1990s (pictured), so are rather behind world class standard in 2006. This is a shame, since both United and American have announced upgrades to their international business class seating, Delta has a chance to be better than its two big US rivals. However, nice to see service being improved with AVOD and better catering. Delta is also providing hot food in lounges, which is something rare in European airline lounges. US carriers are typically well behind the world in seating and service, on the service front it looks like Delta is coming closer to the world standard. It's a shame that seating is still two generations behind the best in business class, as most business travellers at the end of the day, pay for the seat more than anything else. While that is the case, it is unlikely to get a 4 star Skytrax ranking.

Delta upgrades International Coach class service

Delta new BusinessElite experience

Asiana - New Long Haul Business Class

2006-07-07T20:13:00.001Z

Asiana- Star Alliance - Republic of Korea

Asiana has announced that it is introducing a new business class on services operated by its brand new Boeing 777 and Airbus A330 aircraft.

This includes:

New seats which recline flat to 167 degrees with 60 inch room between seats.
15 inch monitors with AVOD (30 movies)
Internet access
Larger bathrooms with full length mirrors

Conclusion?
A good step forward, Asiana is catching up with Korean Air, with angled lie flat seats. Competitive with most regional carriers, it brings Asiana up to the standard for most major international carriers. This should improve its long haul Business Class seat rating from 3 to 4 stars, but as an otherwise 4 star rated airline by Skytrax, and with live internet access on board, Asiana is not only a serious contender for flights to and from South Korea, but also for transit through Seoul's new Incheon Airport.

Asiana New Business Class

Purpose

2006-07-07T20:01:00.000Z

This blog exists to update improvements and reductions in service by major international airlines worldwide. The focus will be on Star Alliance, OneWorld and Skyteam airlines, and major independent carriers such as Virgin Atlantic and Emirates.

The intention is to cut through the hype, and describe seating, entertainment, catering, service levels and other innovations.