#FIRSTCLASS SEATS UPGRADE#

“People demand more from the business class than they used to,” Mr. In fact, business class has become so comfortable that, in many cases, it can rival first class itself. Lie-flat seats have moved to business class. Individual screens are now found in the seatbacks in coach. “It’s just not an option.” First class has also served as a lab for in-flight amenities that eventually trickled down to the rest of the plane. “If you don’t refurbish your cabins, then all you are left with is the low-yielding traffic,” Mr. Emirates, for instance, announced it would begin service from Dubai to Dallas and Seattle early next year. International rivals are starting to encroach deeper into their domestic markets, beyond New York and Los Angeles.

#FIRSTCLASS SEATS UPGRADE#

Immigration officers come directly into the lounge to check passports, and passengers are driven to the airplane in a limousine only seconds before the doors shut.īut American carriers were slower to react, largely because they lacked the funds to upgrade their cabins until recently. Air France, for instance, now has a dedicated first-class lounge in Paris with a spa and a restaurant catered by the chef Alain Ducasse. Emirates, based in Dubai, came up with personal suites for first-class passengers in 2003 and in 2008 installed two showers on its Airbus A380 planes for them.Įuropean airlines quickly recognized the threat. In recent years, the airlines most aggressive in adding luxury touches to first class have come from Asia and the Middle East, among them Cathay Pacific and Singapore Airlines. That includes a growing business-class section with offerings once solely the preserve of first class. Though only a privileged few can afford to pay $15,000 to fly first class from New York to Singapore or Sydney, the airlines are betting that the image of luxury they project for the front helps attract passengers to the rest of the plane. So as domestic travelers take to the skies for the holiday season, most will be in cramped cabins, their food is likely to be bland and they will have paid for it, along with any fees for slightly more legroom or checked bags.īut even as they have cut back on domestic service, including first-class accommodations, the airlines have been engaged in a global battle for top executives and the superwealthy on their international routes. The amenities in the back of the cabin? Sparse.

One airline has installed showers onboard. They provide massages before takeoff, whisk passengers through special customs lanes and drive them in a private limousine right to the plane. The gap between first class and coach has never been so wide.Ĭarriers on international flights are offering private suites for first-class passengers, three-star meals and personal service once found only on corporate jets.

Firstclass seats