BA really got it right, focusing on the seat-bed

[jjpb3]

Just flew a TATL route where arriving relatively refreshed was a much-valued benefit of business class. It made me think BA (then VS) really understood the core marketing issue to frequent business fare travellers: what matters most on my flight, that I'm willing to forgive almost anything else?

It seemed to me that it really is the seat. If you're popping a sleeping pill to zonk off soon after you board, and getting up with barely time to gulp down the breakfast smoothie and a cup of (not very nice-tasting) coffee, it's a horizontal bed that matters. If you're working most of the time on a daylight flight, you don't care about an elaborate meal service or wide selection of IFE options. You want the meal served with little fuss, and then time to focus on your work.

This logic probably works best on the medium-haul North Atlantic crossing, but I do know of friends who choose BA over CX on the LHR-HKG route, and BA over SQ on the LHR-SIN route, for the reasons above.

I'm curious:

Does this rationale hold for the longer Asian routes? Or is there something that makes intra-Asia (say, SIN-NRT) flight different? Does crossing the Pacific from SE Asia put a greater premium on the soft touches relative to the hard reality of a horizontal bed being best for sleep?

Thoughts?

[jhm]

Well put, jjpb3! I'm of the view that good food is nice but at the end of the day, it's still only going to be airline food. I take my own IFE. What's left for me is the seat/bed and the service.

It's not only just the seat/bed which BA have focused on to enable business pax to arrive in good shape but also, e.g., the sleeper services (to those who might not know - you eat dinner in the lounge (if available, e.g. not in DXB) and then there's a quick nightcap on the plane before lights out) and the LHR arrivals lounges (shower, have your work clothes pressed, a quick massage and a hot English breakfast - both to freshen up and also to maximise sleep time on board by skipping breakfast).

Coming back from my recent weekend SIN trip and going straight from the airport to work, I picked BA (even though it was the most expensive option) precisely because of the factors mentioned above plus, compared to the Middle Eastern carriers, the uninterrupted sleep time in a direct flight.

(Perhaps an arrivals lounge would be a nice addition to the SQ service in SIN T3 ? I know the argument that your hotel should be the arrivals lounge but if on a biz trip, it's not always possible to go there first. Edit: having said that, it presumably won't get as much use as the ones in LHR given the amazing efficiency of SIN and the size of Singapore itself, e.g. less than an hour from touchdown to being in your hotel room!)

[jjpb3]

I forgot about the sleeper service and the Arrivals Lounge, jhm. Thanks for reminding us. Both are a godsend to businesspeople who don't have time to drop their stuff off at a hotel or at home before the first meeting in their diary.

[JetE]

I think it's probably a cultural thing as well. For example, European business travelers may value flexibility most, i.e. the freedom to eat, sleep, work as you choose. Thus, the service concept is more about making sure good reliable hardware is available and easy to access on a self-service basis. Asian travelers may be more accustomed to being served and place more emphasis on the luxury aspect of the privilege, which results in more elaborate service that consumes more time and space.

[KeithMEL]

I used to be obsessed with getting on to BA over other oneworld carriers for my night flights because of the flat beds. But then I realised that I couldn't get proper sleep on planes, no matter how comfy the seats are. Unless I've been flying on a 30 hour back to back, or popped a sleeping pill - I would just not be able to sleep properly. So lately I've paid more attention to other less tangible aspects of the product, such as punctuality, wine list, catering, IFE and FAs, and not totally flat bed vs slanted beds. I've found that it's far more effective for me to relax, enjoy the IFE and wines, and catch a few snoozes.

This might all change if I travel long haul for work and turn into a weary biz traveler of course.

[jjpb3]

This might all change if I travel long haul for work and turn into a weary biz traveler of course.

I do think you might change your tune once you start travelling for work. I find that my mindset is very different when I'm a leisure traveller compared to when I'm travelling with meetings and presentations to take care of. For example, sometimes even a couple of glasses of wine just isn't an option when you have to work; for someone who doesn't need to be quite as focused at the destination, a couple of glasses might be de rigueur for enjoying the flight experience.

We'll await with bated breath to see how KeithMEL deals with the world of work travel.

[KeithMEL]

We'll await with bated breath to see how KeithMEL deals with the world of work travel.

Ha, that's if I get any long haul work travel to begin with. *fingers crossed* CBR obviously doesn't count.