For those who don’t like the flying dormitories of the British Airways Boeing 777, there is some very good news – with the rollout of the Club Suite product retrofit continues.
The rollout is expected to be completed by the end of 2022.
The airline already has retrofitted a number of its Boeing 777 aircraft with the latest seat and will be working with Collins Aerospace to ensure the rest of the airline’s 777 aircraft are fitted with the new cabin.
The airline’s Club Suite was first rolled out in July 2019 on the first A350 and since then has been installed on the Boeing 787-10 aircraft. It is a variant of the Collins Aerospace SuperDiamond seat (a firm favourite at Economy Class and Beyond).
The seat offers direct-aisle access, a suite door for greater privacy and luxurious flat-bed seats in a 1-2-1 configuration. Boasting 40 per cent more storage, including a vanity unit and mirror, WiFi, enviable 18.5-inch inflight entertainment screens, high definition gate-to-gate programming and PC / USB power.
As part of the upgrade, the airline’s Club Kitchen is also getting a makeover with new Club chillers and built-in storage for snacks, drinks and other refreshments, allowing customers in Club World to help themselves to refreshments at their leisure.
In a move that could be seen as defensive or attacking, Club Suite will available on all flights to New York-JFK. This could be seen as matching the American Airlines product, or going on the attack after United Airlines bumped up their network frequency out of Newark NJ yesterday.
First Class Updates too
The latest generation of the First cabin including the introduction of the First suite door will also continue to be rolled out across the airline’s Boeing 777-300ER aircraft.
The First suites were designed based on customers feedback, with the cabin putting comfort at the heart of the experience and making use of the generous space designed for just a few customers at a time.
The suite includes a fixed 23-inch high definition inflight entertainment screen that can be controlled with an integrated handset.
In Quotes
Sajida Ismail, Head of Inflight Product at British Airways, said:
“When we launched our Club Suite product, it was a huge hit with our customers who loved the privacy the new seat offers. We are focused on the roll out of this product and other cabin enhancements to ensure we deliver on our commitment to provide the very best British quality, style and comfort for our customers.”
Trevor Skelly, General Manager Integration Engineering for Collins Aerospace, said
“The upgraded Club World cabin raises British Airways’ already high standards and provides commonality across their fleet of aircraft. Our Integration Engineering team has worked closely with British Airways designers for several years to bring the latest in business class comfort, style and privacy from concept to reality.”
Still some way to go
It’s welcoming to see the Club Suite rollout continue, as the British Airways fleet simplifies. There is some way to go, however, with the following fleets waiting for the installation of the new product:
- Airbus A380
- Boeing 787-8
- Boeing 789-9
Pre-pandemic, this called for a rollout to be completed before 2025 – how that timeline has changed, we’ll find out one day.
Don’t forget that whilst the densities haven’t changed much, the seating layouts have tightened however – I did the math some time ago:
As such, those in the back of the aircraft will note that World Traveller – the economy product has 14 extra seats – which can only mean that 3-4-3 seating is present in the back of the plane.
So, there will be some tight business class cabins out there still. As usual – check the equipment assigned to your flight when booking it (unless you’re flying to JFK… in which case, you should be fine).
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