
Airlines are scrapping economy seats to fit more ‘expensive' passengers onboard and it's bad news for your cheap flights
AIRLINES are scrapping some of their economy seats to make room - for more expensive ones on their planes.
Air
France
's new La Premiere cabin recently launched onboard, but costs $11,000 (£8,288.87) to travel between Paris and New York, America.
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Air France is spending million on fitting out it's planes
Credit: Air France
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This includes the 38-square-foot La Premiere cabin
Credit: Air France
Yet, there are passengers that are willing to pay this.
The La Premiere cabin is part of Air Frances $550million (£414.4million) investment to upgrade existing planes and lounges and push to attract higher spending travellers.
But they aren't the only airline doing this, reports the
Airlines across the planet are racing to build the most exclusive and high-end cabins available on the market, for passengers who are willing to pay the top dollar.
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This includes upgrading soft amenities, such as caviar and champagne, teaming up with designers to provide custom pajamas and partnering with
Michelin
star chefs to upgrade menu offerings.
The push is partially as a result of
business
passengers not returning to pre-COVID levels and therefore airlines are looking for ways to increase their profits.
This is because economy seats are there to subsidise the cost of flying, whereas premier seats and cabins are there to make the airline money.
Essentially, airlines can charge more for business and
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But all of this depends on the amount of money regular leisure passengers are willing to spend.
For example, a regular economy seat can cost under $1,000 (£753.53), for a return flight between
Qantas reveal Project Sunrise A350
This then doubles to $2,000 (£1,507.07) for a
But the jump to a La Premiere cabin, for instance, goes up to $11,000 (£8,288.87).
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Cabins are more private and do have more space - La Premiere cabins span 38-square-foot and have five windows each.
In comparison some
For the ultimate
luxury
and space,
Yet despite this, it remains unclear whether leisure passengers spending more money on these seats will actually last.
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Many airlines are looking to upgrade their more premium offerings
Credit: Air France
With the waitlist for planes and components being long, airlines have to commit to seat layout far in advance.
This means
This may include looking at specific routes, to see whether people spend more money on one route over another and consequently there is higher demand for more premium seats.
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Then airlines can assess whether to get rid of economy seats to make room for more premium seats.
If the number of economy seats were reduced, it could cause them to become more expensive as demand may also increase for these seats.
Airbus also recently
Plus,
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4
This could mean less economy seats
Credit: Getty

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The Irish Sun
14 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
World's longest flight was the worst 18 hours of my life – here's the only reason I'm tempted back onboard
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It's either the future of air travel or absolute madness - I'm genuinely not sure which. Worth The Premium? 11 A look at what the First class suites might look like 11 The business suites onboard the airline's new planes Qantas says Sydney-London passengers will pay an estimated 20% premium over connecting flights, but the airline has said that early feedback suggests people are willing to cough up the extra cash to avoid stopovers. That 20% price hike is the big question. On a £800 return ticket to Australia, you're looking at an extra £160 to fly direct. For many, that's a small price to pay to avoid the hassle of connections, especially if you're traveling with kids or lots of luggage. The maths gets even more compelling when you factor in potential hotel costs during long layovers, airport food, and the sheer exhaustion of navigating multiple airports. Plus, with the new cabin features like free Wi-Fi, you're getting some of the premium economy experience at economy prices. Business travellers will likely snap up the direct option without thinking twice. For leisure travellers, it depends whether you value the time and convenience over saving a few quid. My Verdict Seven years ago, I would have told anyone considering the Perth-London route to book a connection instead. The cramped conditions, lack of amenities, and general misery made it feel like paying extra to be tortured. But these new A350s sound like a completely different proposition. Wider seats than even the A380 which operates on stopover routes, WiFi, and space to move around could actually make 17+ hours in economy bearable - maybe even preferable to the hassle of connections. I'm genuinely tempted to give it another go when the new planes start flying. That's something I never thought I'd say after my inaugural flight experience. The real test will be whether Qantas can deliver on these promises. Airlines are great at talking up new cabins, but the proof will be in the flying. If they get it right, they might just have revolutionised ultra-long-haul travel. If they don't, well, at least Singapore and Dubai have the


Irish Examiner
3 days ago
- Irish Examiner
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The Irish Sun
3 days ago
- The Irish Sun
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