Air New Zealand new longhaul - Premium Economy

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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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).

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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.

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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

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

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

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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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

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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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Koru Hour is described on the website as follows:

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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.

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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.

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"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."

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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

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.

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

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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?

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.