The new SQ cabin classes - Discussion & speculation thread

[yflyer]

Some of the Suites/F dining selections on display.

Note that all of the catering on display at the launch appeared to be actual SATS-catered food, not mock-ups!

[yflyer]

And to wrap up, here is a seat map of the new A380 cabin, with Suites and Business Class on the upper deck, and Premium Economy and Economy on the lower deck.



Overall an excellent launch event, showcasing cabin products which will make SQ's A380 a very attractive aircraft to fly for years to come!



Thanks 9V-SIA for guesting me and 9V-JKL to this event...it was great to catch up and explore the exhibition together!

[9V-SIA]

I had a great time. The event impressed.

From the nice speech, the music by the crew and rollout of the new seats.

Not forgetting the fun company I was with!

Wasn’t the buffet great as well? Just regret I’m on diet!

Thanks for your work in posting these wonderful pictures

Looking forward to flying the new A380 to London

[yflyer]

Cheers for uploading yflyer! I hope the padding in Y is comfortable enough for Long haul flights as I find the current ones a bit uncomfortable (missing the old Y seats that hey use to have in the 744’s)...

Hi Pinkfloyd! Yes padding was good...very comfortable...better than the current 2006 Y on the A380, which is a little on the firm side.

[yflyer]

Great pics. I was admittedly not all that whelmed with the new Suites when I saw the leaks & PR shots. Nice but didn't exactly wow (playing catch up to EY was my initial reaction). But the more contextual pics taken by journalists and assorted bloggers look way better, with greater depth of field to illustrate the space per pax on offer. Can't wait to try it for ourselves in a few months.

Thanks, KeithMEL!...the leaked pics looked slightly insipid, and even the PR shots did not really portray how good the seats were in real life. I was thoroughly impressed by Suites and Business Class when I tried them out at the launch.

Look forward to your feedback and impressions of the new products when you fly them, because that's the only way to know for sure!

[yflyer]

From what I see, I don't think it's possible to comfortably get out of the new J seat during the meal service anymore as the table is hinged on the aisle-side console now as compared to the existing J products which are hinged on the non-aisle-side + considering the degree of swing within the available pitch...

Good catch, wdranne! I didn't check for this...need to add this to my checklist! It might be possible by swinging the tray table out slightly then squeezing past along the side and front of the seat, but it may not be a very elegant maneouver.

I guess we will need to wait till the first flights to see if it is possible...

[yflyer]

I had a great time. The event impressed.

From the nice speech, the music by the crew and rollout of the new seats.

Not forgetting the fun company I was with!

Wasn’t the buffet great as well? Just regret I’m on diet!

Thanks for your work in posting these wonderful pictures

Looking forward to flying the new A380 to London

Thanks again, 9V-SIA! Yes the F&B at the event was wonderful...pics to be posted shortly in a separate thread!

Looking forward to trying out these products too!

[yflyer]

The way you're pointing out Y class now, it doesn't look as bad as you've explained it.

Now, as far as Y class, could I safely assume it's like CX's current 77W Y seats: No touch-remote with a bulkhead version of the airshow and if one had to ask an attendant for assistance these would all have to be controlled by the touchscreen correct?

Anyway, great pictures. Thanks again!'

Hi SQfanatic!

It is a good Y product...up to SQ's high standards and on balance about equivalent to SQ's excellent 2013 Y in most respects, with incremental, but not revolutionary, improvements in a few areas.

There is still a dedicated cabin crew call button and light switch...everything else is on the touchscreen.

Most importantly the seats are comfortable, recline well, and are about equivalent in seat width to current SQ long haul Y, which are best in class as far as Y cabin comfort is concerned.

SQ has got a lot right in the new seat, but what I am also very happy about is what SQ didn't do...

- They didn't use a fixed shell Y design, which has caused neck aches at CX and NH. Fixed shell Y is a failed concept, at least the way it has been implemented to date.

- They didn't remove the hard backing from the seat back. This seat back has a firm backing, which means you cannot feel the knees of the pax behind. Unlike the new CX A350 Y seat, which is great in most ways, but has a major flaw in that there is no hard backing in the seat, which means you can feel the knees of the pax behind you. Not pleasant.

- The seat is not narrow like 9-abreast 787's or 10-abreast 777's. That would have been a big issue. These are ok for LCC's, but I wonder how much longer full service carriers can get away with these configs before customers wise up and vote with their wallets to fly carriers with more spacious seats.

[jcnkc]

For those who were not able to attend the launch events, here's a 41min video showing you all the speeches, songs, and videos from the event:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAfHPcOiedg

[SQfanatic]

Hi SQfanatic!

It is a good Y product...up to SQ's high standards and on balance about equivalent to SQ's excellent 2013 Y in most respects, with incremental, but not revolutionary, improvements in a few areas.

There is still a dedicated cabin crew call button and light switch...everything else is on the touchscreen.

Most importantly the seats are comfortable, recline well, and are about equivalent in seat width to current SQ long haul Y, which are best in class as far as Y cabin comfort is concerned.

SQ has got a lot right in the new seat, but what I am also very happy about is what SQ didn't do...

- They didn't use a fixed shell Y design, which has caused neck aches at CX and NH. Fixed shell Y is a failed concept, at least the way it has been implemented to date.

- They didn't remove the hard backing from the seat back. This seat back has a firm backing, which means you cannot feel the knees of the pax behind. Unlike the new CX A350 Y seat, which is great in most ways, but has a major flaw in that there is no hard backing in the seat, which means you can feel the knees of the pax behind you. Not pleasant.

- The seat is not narrow like 9-abreast 787's or 10-abreast 777's. That would have been a big issue. These are ok for LCC's, but I wonder how much longer full service carriers can get away with these configs before customers wise up and vote with their wallets to fly carriers with more spacious seats.

Hi yflyer,

Glad to hear the seats were comfortable for you and actually CX's seat does recline -- My father flew CX this past June when he traveled, except for regional craft for longhaul there is no shell seat and everything you have to use is through the touchscreen (i.e. call button and light). It's great SQ has decided to maintain two of those that are not in tne touchscreen.

Man I agree with you, the only gripe alongside with the seats is how the aisles would feel when walking. Unfortunately my parents and I have spotted the difference back when EK flew the 77W to SFO. Except for that it can be the impact of the seat pitch. It's great to hear for SQ's new seats here, it's not narrow.

If these will be implemented on the 787-10 or (maybe regional A350), I hope and would be happy to fly it if it flies to South and east part of India (i.e. Kolkata).

Cheers

[GR1]

Many thanks yflyer for your excellent portrayal of the new products.

While I personally feel they are undoubtedly miles better than the current 2006 products on the A380, I am not sure if the same could be said when comparing them to the 2013 products featuring on 77W - referring to Y and J class.

According to me, as rightly mentioned by yourself and SQ747 - the aesthetics just don't do justice for a premium airline like SQ. The new J sort of looks like an arcade game machine, especially due to the orange outlined storage compartments - it no longer looks luxurious. The 2013 J in my opinion is the best looking seat in its class and industry. Same goes for Y - the new seat looks like a downgrade from the 2013 version. I guess we can only certainly make a judgement by experiencing the products first hand - but the first impressions are surely not the same as they were back in 2013 - which had really amazed.

[SQGamespeed]

Wonderful pictures of the new product, yflyer! Also thank you to 9V-JKL and 9V-SIA for sharing your impressions!

I am happy to see that the new J seat can now be converted to fully-flat with a button. That is definitely much more convenient for me. I had hoped they would introduce this for the 2013 product, and I was a bit disappointed that they did not back then.

The back of the Y seat definitely looks more cluttered, but the addition of contactless payment is interesting. Still looks like a fairly comfortable seat, however.

And yes, Suites does indeed appear to look even better than the leaked photos show. The reduction in the number of Suites from the current configuration definitely appears to be more than made up for in terms of space and quality.

Did they also have new BTC options that would come with the product?

[SQ_326]

Yflyer, thanks for the pictures.

Most top airlines would dress up their premium cabins in a warm (SQ 2006/2013), crisp (UA Polaris, Delta biz suite) or refreshing colors (NZ). What did you gather on the F and J seats onsite?

[flyguy]

hpwever at most there will be only 5 A380s that will have the all new seats in 2018 and it be only another almost 3 long years before all the A380s are refurbished to the same suites. Simiiarly too only a handful of A350s and 787s that will be equipped with the new seats for 2018.

[Tonitan]

The width of the new J seats make me appreciate the 2006 J even more now. Just a personal opinion,despite looking aged and dull,the 2006 J is my current favourite for a nice snooze. The 2013 J took some width away and now the 2017 has reduced the width further. I wonder if the narrower width of the upper deck has anything to do with it. Still,I can’t image how much more they need to reduce for the A350,which is the aircraft for me to avoid now