p46-50 ttg_lux_feature_air Wint09 27/11/09 14:22 Page 48
luxury: business class features a
77.7-inch flatbed, 17-inch TV and high-end WHAT’S HOT FOR 2010?
Amouage amenities. All cabins will have
■
New British Airways first-class cabin. To be unveiled early
Wi-Fi by early 2010, and passengers will
2010. Early reports indicate it will be a tweak of the existing
also be able to make and receive mobile
design.
phone calls.
■
Etihad new first class suites are currently being fitted.
Emirates, meanwhile, continues to
■
Air France will bring more Airbus A380s into its fleet and fit
refurbish and now offers lie-flat business
premium economy cabins to long-haul aircraft.
■
Iberia’s new business class will provide a flatbed option for
class seats on all Boeing 777s.
travellers to Latin America connecting via Spain.
■
New cabins from airlines such as US Airways, Delta and
Class of America Continental will put further downward pressure on premium
AIR NEW ZEALAND
If clients are looking for luxury across the
US fares from Heathrow.
BUSINESS PREMIER
Atlantic, this year is probably the best ever
■
The premium experience on the ground at Heathrow will be
better for many travellers following the opening of the
to do it, with a raft of new cabins and
Skyteam lounge in Terminal 4 and the new BA lounges in
London-Los Angeles-Auckland
competitive prices. Since Heathrow
Terminal 3.
opened to more US carriers in March last
■
Helsinki airport’s new spa opens, available to business class The facts: Daily Business Premier
year, US airlines have raised their game,
passengers of any airline.
flights start from £2,450. Tel: 0800
and with careful booking a flatbed option 028 4149, airnewzealandtrade.co.uk
can be found on most flights.
US Airways brings its new Envoy Suite Delta recently fitted flatbeds to all Style & substance: The soothing mint
to Heathrow this December, an innovative Boeing 767 aircraft used from Heathrow and moss greens of the cabin, aisle
“reverse herringbone” design – unlike and will later offer the new product from access to my seat and characteristic
other herringbone formats, those in Gatwick and Manchester. Seats are friendliness of the Kiwi cabin crew
window seats actually face the window. forward facing in a 1-2-1 design. instantly relaxed me.
Continental Airlines is currently fitting Delta’s Heathrow passengers have Top notch Could try harder
Boeing 777s used on Heathrow routes with another bonus in the form of the new
fully flat beds. All will be done by August Skyteam facility at Terminal 4. Here, one Feeling: The large, modern Star
2011. Boeing 757s used from New York to floor of the Skyteam lounge – the alliance’s Alliance lounge at Heathrow T1 was
UK regional airports will have the new seat first in the world – will appeal to leisure barely a quarter full with plenty of quiet
but not all will be fitted until August 2012. travellers as it has a spa, massage area, an seating areas. However there was no
Continental’s new seats are pod-style oxygen bar, games consoles and a wine bar. internet access when I visited which,
and fitted with universal power and iPod Iberia announced its intention to judging by the comments book, had
sockets plus a USB port. All seats, which improve long-haul business class shortly caused plenty of irritation. The shower
extend to 78 inches, are forward-facing before its merger with British Airways. areas were spacious and well-serviced
and 27 inches wide when the armrest is Iberia has promised a full revamp in 2012, and there was a decent choice of
lowered, with a narrow footrest in the when it may adopt a Club World-style snacks, drinks and reading material.
back of seat in front. Schumacher said the product, but meantime is modifying VIP One of the masses
design would suit the majority of travellers cabins to offer fully-flat beds by removing
from the UK. “The percentage of time, for a row of seats from each. This gives an And so to bed: The 22in-wide leather
example, on a New York flight, that you extra foot of space between rows and seat with footrest and good-sized table
need to lie flat is very small,” he said. permits the seat to extend fully. The entire flips almost instantly into a 6ft 7in flat
bed with a little help from cabin crew. I
welcomed not having to fiddle with the
system myself. The Pacifica moisturising
products smelt delicious and protected
my skin from the dry cabin air.
Comfortable cocoon Cabin fever
On the menu: The menu, with a
selection of dishes from some of New
Zealand’s best chefs – Peter Gordon,
Rex Morgan and Geoff Scott – was
diverse. Six New Zealand wines,
including one sparkling, accompanied
the four-course dinner.
A fine feast Eat before boarding
High-tech v low-tech: The 10.4in seat-
back TV offers an on-demand choice
including 82 films, 150 TV programmes,
185 music CDs and 15 video games.
Switched on Switched off
Who’s it for: Business and leisure
travellers on their way to LA’s
star-studded shores and beyond.
If it were a famous person… it would
be New Zealand actress Anna Paquin,
quietly flitting between LA and London,
a worthy celebrity that flies beneath the
media radar… perhaps not for much longer.
48
by Abigail Cattell
featurepremiumair
winter 09 ttgluxury.com
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