The luxury-travel business is booming. So why is first-class flying in decline?
called a “Disneyland for the rich”. At the city’s airport the three first-class lounges of Emirates, the United Arab Emirates’ flag-carrier, do not disappoint. Each one is as big as the terminal’s concourse, built to accommodate thousands of passengers. But every day only a hundred or so enter each first-class lounge. Instead of the overpriced fast-food on offer in the public concourse, a maze of restaurants and bars serve free caviar and champagne.
When commercial aviation got going after the second world war there was only one class: first. Economy appeared in the 1950s. It was followed in the 1970s by business class and in the 1990s by premium economy, to fill the gap between business and cattle class. On longer routes, new seats that turned into fully flat beds were a game-changer. These were originally introduced byin first class in 1995, and much sought after. If travellers can sleep comfortably in the sky, they can save the cost of a hotel or, more importantly for time-pressed corporate warriors, a day’s working time. However, in 2000launched a similar seat in business, and most carriers have followed suit. That has weakened the case for flying first class.
Many airlines, however, are no longer convinced by this argument and have slimmed down their first-class offerings. One such is Air France-whose chief executive in 2014, Alexandre de Juniac, claimed that first class was “little more than a costly marketing gimmick” and that “no one makes money out of it”.
But even Emirates’ first- and business-class sales are threatened by private jets. These let executives avoid the wait for a scheduled flight. It is also much quicker to pass through security in a private-jet terminal than an airport. And in America ten times as many airports are open to private jets as are available for the bigger aircraft airlines use. Moreover, executive jets are becoming cheaper in relative terms, says Adam Twidell of PrivateFly, a private-jet booking service.
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