Respectfully disagree here. Even something short like SYD > MEL could benefit from a lie-flat bed. Especially with an attentive flight attendant you could have a meal and a 30 minute nap on a route like that. Now that's what I call value!
Respectfully disagree here. MNL happens to be a great origin point if you want cheap J fares to Europe.
The other big thing is the US has something called time zones meaning if you are flying from New York to LA you're crossing 3 time zones. They also have something called red-eye flights where flight depart as late as midnight meaning you might actually want to get a good night's sleep.
You are right that they are being used by some airlines. But certainly not on most routes. For instance, JetBlue's business class is lie flat for some aircraft. Even American, a good chunk of their fleet is domestic business style.
What I cannot understand is how these airlines can manage to squeeze in 4 J lie flat seats on a narrow body like the A320 which might I add is the number of lie flats you'll find in J on a wide-body like the A330 with QF, 787 with UA or 777 with AC. Again, sacrifices need to be made, namely in the width of the seat which after some time does hurt the butt.
Yes but was it a 2-2 configuration or a 1-1 configuration? Huge difference between the two on a narrow-body!