GO AIRLINES:Economy? First class? There are so many options that airfares can be confusing. As one airline ups the luxury stakes with on-board showers, Brian O'Connellinvestigates what you get for your money
A FEW WEEKS AGO, about to board a Virgin flight from Johannesburg, I asked about getting an aisle or a bulkhead seat. "Certainly," came the cheery response. "That will be €80 extra. How would you like to pay?"
The flight was at the end of a hellish 16-hour journey that had begun in Mozambique, so, somewhat reluctantly, I coughed up the cash. I got extra legroom and storage space, but that was about it. The other five passengers in the row had also upgraded, all of us victims of the overclassification of airline seating.
The standard seat, it seems, is not so standard any more, with airlines redefining the types of seats we sit on, with significant effects on cost.
For the past decade airlines have been competing to provide the ultimate in luxury, and yesterday Emirates won top place by becoming the first to offer spas complete with showers and hairdrying facilities on its A380 superjumbo jets on flights between New York and Dubai.
The two spas are for the convenience of passengers travelling in the aircrafts' 14 enclosed suites - return airfare $14,635.47 (€9,390.66) - giving airline travellers the closest experience yet to private jet travel.
Singapore Airlines introduced private cabins last year, much to the embarrassment of stewards, who insisted that a no-sex policy come into force after they entered suites with food and drinks only to find passengers in flagrante.
Even for the thriftier passenger, airlines have developed a range of mid-price privileges to make long-haul flying more comfortable - but even a few centimetres of extra legroom comes with a price.
It's worth remembering that on the first transatlantic air service, using airships in the late 1920s and 1930s, customers had just one class to choose from: first. The facilities on each dirigible, which took 80 to 100 hours to fly up to 20 passengers between Germany and the US, included staterooms, a dining room, a lounge, a piano, an observation deck and a smoking room. Each passenger paid $461 (€295), or more than $4,500 (€2,890) in today's terms, for a one-way ticket.
The opulence didn't last too long. Once mass travel began to take hold, economy class became the preferred option for the majority.
But has the airline industry come full circle with the redefinition of what constitutes an "economy" seat? In recent years the growth of business class has virtually made first class redundant, while a new class, premium economy, has begun to bridge the gap between economy and business. Now even economy class has layers of privilege - for which you will most likely pay extra. You are now being asked to pay if you choose a front-row seat or any other seating differentiation, says Mark Pilling, editor of Airline Business magazine. "You pay to get off the planes first and, in some cases, you pay for speedy boarding."
The size of an economy-class seat hasn't changed all that much. The seat pitch - the distance from any point on your seat to the same point on the seat in front or behind you - is normally 74cm (29in) on short-haul routes, moving up to 81cm (32in) on long-haul routes.
What has changed in economy is the fact that. in many cases, you have to pay for extras, including food and baggage.
Exit seats are slightly more convenient, but the seats are still the same size: you just have more legroom. Premium, or enhanced, economy has become the thriving new class in airline travel over the past 10 years, and some airlines, such as Air New Zealand, have begun to move away from first class.
Pilling says it is all about real estate in the sky. "Marketing departments want better seats to market, while revenue departments are looking at space. But I see a demand for a better economy product continuing."
What airlines give you for your long-haul fare
Aer Lingus
Economy
• With a pitch (the space between your seat and the one in front, which isn't quite the same as legroom) of 79cm (31in), the room you'll have is fairly standard.
• In-flight entertainment is pretty good, though, with 12 films, 50 hours of TV and 200 CDs to choose from.
Premium economy
Not offered.
Premier
• Much roomier - a 147cm (58in) pitch - with seats that lie flat and bigger video screens.
• Passengers can expect to quaff from Waterford crystal and eat off fine china.
Sample fare
• Dublin to New York from €287 in economy and from €1,355 in premier.
Qantas
Economy
• Standard seat space but a choice of 60 films to help take your mind off it, as well as CDs, radio channels and games.
Premium economy
Designer seats that are 48cm (19in) wide; 23cm (9in) recline with footrests, making it like something Joey from Friends would choose.
Premier
• Seats as in premium economy. Pitch a fairly stubby 107cm (42in), mind you.
• State-of-the-art entertainment with touch-screen monitors, but the same range of options as those slumming it in economy.
Sample fare
• London to Sydney about €740 economy, about €1,475 premium economy and about €2,565 premier.
Virgin Atlantic
Economy
• Standard seat pitch but newer craft have adjustable headrests and lumber supports.
• Movies, TV, games and audio all available, but you'll be hard pressed to take your eyes off the SkyMap video giving you the lowdown on what's going on outside your window. Nothing, hopefully.
Premium economy
• Fifty-three centimetre (21in) seat width and 97cm (38in) pitch, after-dinner liqueur and priority boarding.
Premier
• Size matters when you fly, and Upper Class passengers enjoy seats that are a very posh 56cm (22in) wide and 213cm (almost 7ft) long.
• Tire of the in-flight entertainment and you can slink up to the in-flight bar. Find someone you like and you can invite them to sit on your guest ottoman.
Sample fare
• London to Sydney about €1,565 economy, about €2,735 premium economy and about €8,690 premier.
British Airways
Economy
• Standard 79cm (31in) pitch and 43cm (17in) width.
• Standard range of in-flight entertainment options, too.
Premium economy
• Wider seats, more legroom and larger cabin - plus nice blankets and seat-back video.
Premier
• Up here you get lie-flat beds and a turn-down service with velvet slippers. There's even your very own "sleepsuit". Presumably with bunnies on it.
Sample fare
• London to Sydney €913 economy, €1,419 premium economy and €4,841 premier.
Air France
Economy
• Seats recline to 118 degrees, which is just enough to annoy the person behind you but not enough to spill his dinner.
Premium economy
• Its Alizé cabins keep 36 of you, your feather pillows and your massaging footrests separate from the hoi polloi.
Premier
• Your first-class cabin has between four and eight seats, each curved around you like a cocoon.
• Your cocoon transforms into a full bed with drawers, compartments, tables and even a banquette, so you can entertain others. Which is good, as you may never leave.
Sample fare
• Dublin to Sydney €797 economy, €2,192 premium economy and €7,786 premier.
American Airlines
Economy
• Newer craft have seat-back video screens, but with most of the stock it's overhead screens, adjustable headrests and a standard 79cm (31in) seat pitch.
Premium economy
Not offered.
Premier
• Opt for the Flagship Suite of its Boeing 777 fleet and it's the closest you might come to Air Force One.
• Not only does your seat transform itself into a bed; it also swivels. Makes a great talking point on your personal in-flight satphone.
Sample fare
• Dublin to New York €284 economy, €1,491 premier.
Singapore Airlines
Economy
• Airline of the Year last year.
• Eighty-one cm (32in) pitch and 43cm (17in) seat width.
• More than 450 entertainment options.
• Premium economy
• Body-moulding bed with multiple positions (but not flat).
Premier
• Book one of its SkySuites and relax. The first-class cabin is more like a drawing room.
• A 198cm (78in) pitch and 56cm (22in) seat width.
Sample fare
• Dublin to Sydney €1,384 economy, €4,941 premium economy and €8,447 premier.
Air New Zealand
Economy
• A generous 86cm (34in) pitch but a not-so-generous 15cm (6in) recline.
• More than 450 hours of video on demand.
Premium economy
• A 22cm (9in) recline (50 per cent more than in economy) and 101cm (40in) pitch.
Premier
• It can slug it out with Virgin, but also claims the longest lie-flat beds, at 200cm (6ft 7in).
• Positively airy 200cm (79in) pitch and 56cm (22in) wide leather armchairs-cum-beds.
Sample fare
• Dublin to Sydney €883 economy, €2,849 premium economy and €5,898 premier.
Sandra O'Connell