Boeing 777s will be retrofitted, but there is as yet no date for when UK travellers will be able to enjoy the new upgraded service. Even the new business class seat design is under threat from the disrupters, such as New York’s Jetblue. Jetblue’s Mint premium cabin has offered a private suite option
Aer Lingus will lease seven A321LRs from 2019, while New York’s Jetblue has the option to convert existing orders to the new type. If it does, delivery will be from 2019 and the airline has said it will fit them with its premium Mint cabin, which it has rolled out on US transcontinental routes. This currently has 16 lie-flat beds, including four enclosed ‘suites’, but this number can be increased. Jetblue has been eyeing up transatlantic routes, and has recently said it wants to focus on the premium market rather than compete with budget carriers in Europe. If it proceeds, the transatlantic business travel market is set for another shake-up.
A surprise taster of this potential upheaval came in July, when Primera Air announced its UK debut at Stansted and Birmingham, offering economy flights to Newark and Boston from next spring. Primera, which is based in Denmark and owned by Icelandic investors, will use new A321neo (new engine option) aircraft, which add enough range to the existing version for it to reach the US. The airline will offer a ‘full service’ premium economy cabin of 16 seats, plus free wi-fi and charging points throughout.
The impact of Primera’s arrival will be felt most at Birmingham airport. While it is easy for buyers and business travellers to be dismissive of airlines such as Primera, on October 5, United Airlines ceases flying from Birmingham to Newark after 20 years. United is the only option, so come next May, Primera is likely to be welcomed with open arms by business travellers and travel buyers because, unless they want to head to Manchester or London or fly via another airport to get to the US, they have no choice.
When it comes to Asia-Pacific, Norwegian will further grab the headlines when it starts the world’s longest low-cost route, from Gatwick to Singapore on September 28. Again, it may not attract flurries of business travellers away from established
Jetblue’s Mint premium cabin
Tianjin Airlines: nonstop flights to China
since 2014, and if it carries out its threat to begin flying transatlantic, it will give the legacy airlines a real run for their money. From January, Mint will feature on 80 daily flights on 20 routes. New 2018 transcontinental routes that will feature the cabin include Boston to Las Vegas and Seattle, and New York JFK to Seattle; all sector lengths of around six hours that could serve as good practice for a transatlantic debut.
One other major business class upgrade comes from United Airlines, although its new Polaris business cabin is a more conservative effort. Polaris is slowly emerging on to its network, offering aisle access to all seats, new soft furnishings and an upgraded menu. The first of United’s 14 new Boeing 777- 300ERs to feature it entered the fleet earlier this year and began operating between San Francisco and Hong Kong. In September,
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