AMERICAN AIRLINES
CABIN CLASS Premium economy
LAUNCH DATE Late 2016
AIRCRAFT AVAILABILITY Initially on the B787-9, but premium economy will be introduced on the B777-300ERs, B777-200ERs, B787-8s and A330s at a later date.
CONFIGURATION 2-3-2
INAUGURAL ROUTE TBC
INFO American Airlines will enter the premium economy market segment fairly late in the game. The great news is that their new leather seat comes with 38 inches of pitch, matching some of the best in the industry. The product also comes with touchscreen monitors, noise-cancelling headphones, AC power outlets and USB ports. For a complete report on AA’s new premium economy service offering, see here.
MALAYSIA AIRLINES
CABIN CLASS Business
LAUNCH DATE March 23
AIRCRAFT AVAILABILITY A330-300
CONFIGURATION A mix of 1-2-1 and 1-2-2
INAUGURAL ROUTE Kuala Lumpur–Sydney on flight MH141/MH140
INFO It’s taken a long time but Malaysia Airlines will finally deliver a fully-flat business class seat on its regional aircraft next month. The new product will offer a 43-inch pitch, width of 20.6 inches and length of 76 inches. The mixed configuration of a 1-2-1 and 1-2-2 layout also ensures that 90 per cent of seats have direct aisle access. Each will come with a 16-inch Panasonic touchscreen in-flight entertainment system, as well as extra stowage space for personal items. It will also feature a power outlet, USB port and reading light.
CATHAY PACIFIC
CABIN CLASS Business
LAUNCH DATE Expected Q2 2016
AIRCRAFT AVAILABILITY A350-XWB
CONFIGURATION 1-2-1
INAUGURAL ROUTE The first long-haul service for the A350 will be to London Gatwick from September 2. However, customers can fly on the new aircraft as early as May, when it operates several regional services as part of the crew familiarisation phase. For full details, see here.
INFO Little is known about Cathay’s new business class seat on the A350, but according to reports, the product will be a slightly tweaked version of the airline’s already successful and well-received Cirrus seat by Zodiac. Seating configuration will remain in a 1-2-1 layout. It's not confirmed, but if the above rumoured image of the new seat holds true, the key differences will be the addition of a touchscreen IFE controller and extra space on both sides of the seat.
GARUDA INDONESIA
CABIN CLASS Business
LAUNCH DATE First aircraft with the new seat delivered on February 1 but the official launch of the aircraft has yet to be decided
AIRCRAFT AVAILABILITY A330-300
CONFIGURATION 1-2-1
INAUGURAL ROUTE TBC
INFO Dubbed the “Super Diamond” seats, Garuda is the first carrier to introduce this type of seat on the A330. It features an adjustable armrest, headrest, meal table and reading light. There is also a 16-inch in-flight entertainment screen with touchscreen handset attached. Business travellers will also appreciate the addition of double USB adaptors and power outlets in each seat.
SAUDI ARABIAN AIRLINES
CABIN CLASS Business
LAUNCH DATE February 2016
AIRCRAFT AVAILABILITY B787-9
CONFIGURATION 1-2-1
INAUGURAL ROUTE The B787-9 will be deployed on flights out of Jeddah to Guangzhou, Manchester and Paris from March 1. It will also serve the Riyadh–Guangzhou route.
INFO Like Garuda, Saudi has chosen to go for the “Super Diamond” seats by BE Aerospace. Sporting the same 1-2-1 configuration, the two products are essentially the same. The colour scheme differs though, as Saudi has opted for more earthy colours for their new business class product.
Clement Huang
