Retrofitting, this is what Swiss's new premium economy will look like
Swiss, the wholly owned subsidiary of Lufthansa, is preparing to equip its planes with the premium economy cabin. The [...]
Swiss
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Swiss, the wholly owned subsidiary of Lufthansa, is preparing to equip its aircraft with the premium economy cabin. The Swiss carrier to date offered first class, business and economy seats on its long-haul flights.
First class on board the 777 Swiss
With this announcement, the carrier officially joins the list of companies that have decided to include an intermediate product between economy and business class, a choice that is already being offered by Lufthansa.
Swiss's operation is called retrofitting, meaning that the new cabin is being installed on aircraft already owned by the company, a major investment also with a view to keeping the aircraft in the fleet.
What Swiss's premium economy seat will look like
Usually airlines install premium economy in separate cabins to provide a less chaotic and quieter environment for passengers. But this was not the choice of Swiss, which, as can be seen from the pictures, decided to place the three rows of PEs at the front of the economy cabin.
Each Boeing 777-300ER will be equipped with 24 state-of-the-art Premium Economy Class seats. In detail, the seat width will be between 46 and 48 centimeters, compared to 43.4 in economy. Seat spacing will increase from 78.7 centimeters in Economy Class to 99 centimeters, resulting in substantially more legroom. Each seat will also enjoy a nearly 16-inch personal IFE screen.
To increase comfort on board, Swiss Premium Economy travelers will receive a complimentary amenity kit specially made from sustainable materials. Cabin configuration will be 2-4-2, as is the case in almost all PE cabins around the world, seats will be wider than 10%, legroom compared to economy will be more generous than 20%, as will the ability to recline the seat more. As mentioned, Swiss will install these new seats on aircraft that are already part of its fleet, namely the 777/300 an investment expected to cost about 40 million francs.
SWISS' onboard cuisine has also been specially designed for the new travel class. Premium Economy travelers will be offered a refreshing elderflower welcome drink and can choose from three hot meals, all served on porcelain tableware.
Other benefits for PE passengers will include the ability to check two pieces of luggage weighing 23kg each, a welcome drink, better-performing headsets for watching movies and live broadcasts, priority boarding, and a discount for access to the group's lounges when flying from Zurich or Geneva.
When will it be operational and how much does it cost
Premium economy will enter service by the end of the year to major intercontinental Swiss destinations including Los Angeles, San Francisco , Miami, and Hong Kong. The cost of this ticket will be about €500/600 more expensive than a round-trip economy ticket.
In conclusion
Not a big fan of premium economy in general, of Swiss's choices I am not at all convinced by the placement of the three rows directly inside the economy cabin and not in a separate area as is the case with other airlines and other areas of the plane. In general I find premium economy unaffordable, and again the offer does not justify the difference on the ticket price, which in some cases might even be double the most discounted fare for little more.
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