Air New Zealand now has more for agents to sell at the front of plane, says acting chief commercial officer Jeremy O’Brien.
With the refurbishment, the airline is now able to compete head-to-head with rivals in premium cabin hard product, although its rollout to all its Dreamliners will stretch for another 18 months. He says its lounge space at AKL will also be expanded and improved with work due to start later this year. NZ’s outdated business premier cabin has been completely transformed in the long-awaited nose to tail interior overhaul, costing around $34m for each aircraft. Half of the carrier’s 14-strong Dreamliner fleet will be refurbished by the end of the year and all by the end of 2026. The airline is also getting the first two of its new 787-9s at the start of next year and O’Brien says those aircraft will be especially premium-heavy with more than half of its seats targeted at top-end customers in business premier Luxe, business premier and premium economy. “That’s a really good product both from a customer perspective, and as a really good margin product. (It) is a really strong product from a commission perspective—your premium product will always have a stronger margin.’’
. . . The New Luxe
The refurbished planes have four Luxe seats at the front of business premier which have extra space, easily accommodating a guest who can sit on an ottoman and dine with the passenger. It has a sliding privacy door although the remaining 22 business premier seats don’t. All premier seats have 24-inch 4k screens—enormous compared to the current premium offering which are smaller than new economy ones. O’Brien says that research shows passengers would be prepared to pay $820 extra for Luxe on long-haul flights such as AKL-New York, $380 for mid-haul and $220 for short-haul. That price premium will be good for the airline—and agents. “Customers told us that the extra space and privacy, and comfort around the seat was something that they’re prepared to pay extra for. “That’s adding value to the customer transaction which is ultimately what we should be all about.’’ Asked about charging more for other seats, O’Brien said: “I think the market will be what the market is.’’
. . . Push To Recline
In business premier, as on other airlines, NZ’s new middle seats feature a sliding door to enable two passengers to share their space. Unlike the confusing existing folding bed, NZ has gone conventional with a push button continuous recline from seat-to-bed mode. When the seat is in bed mode, the headrest can raise up nearly 8cm, making it more comfortable while watching a movie or reading. In luxe and premier the bed is 2m long, and 54cm wide at the top, tapering to 21.5cm. Refurbished planes will have 33 premium economy seats, with a return to fixed hard backs, a 20cm recline and a 15.6in IFE screen. All passengers can connect their own device to the IFE and have the option to bring their own headphones and pair via Bluetooth to the screens, especially useful for economy passengers. In the 213-seat economy section there are 13 seats that can be used for Skycouch and 30 Economy Stretch seats. Multi-seat guaranteed free rows (AKL-JFK) and neighbour-free seats (shorthaul) are available but Skynest, the lie flat option in economy, will come with the new aircraft next year.
