Worst (international) business class seats

[RooFlyer]

OMaaT has an article giving their opinion on this. Fortunately of these, only Euro business and BA are booked by me, and only for relatively short hops within Europe, on Award flights.

The World's Worst Business Class Seats: Here Are My Picks, Do You Agree?

Which airlines have the worst business class seats? Here's my take, though I'm sure many will disagree with my opinions.

onemileatatime.com

The biz seat I have liked least in recent years is Asiana from Almaty to Seoul - angled flat. I am OK with LATAM's 2-2-2 as I like lots of foot room and I chose an aisle.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

It’s a pretty good list.

However I don’t mind eurobusiness… depending on the airline. Lufthansa, Swiss, BA and Air France all do cracking meals, which makes up for it.

Lufthansa’s ‘footsie’ seats get a bad rap, but they're actually ok! Not the most private, but comfortable and I sleep well.

And finally poor old BA. Yeah, it’s weird looking at someone during takeoff and landing, but with a bulkhead seat you get private aisle access and the bed is super comfortable.

 

[Scarlett]

So that grindr gag he made about Royal Air Maroc and the config they have on their B787, well that’s the same kind of config PR have in their older A330s.



Except, PR don’t have the IFE screens in front of you, as per the image in OMaaT. It’s stream direct to your own device from a very limited catalogue.

When I took that image above a few weeks ago flying MNL-RUH, there were only 3 pax in the J cabin. It was a day time flight so I never put it into full bed mode. All in all it was fine for that circumstance.

Contrast that to last night flying the return RUH-MNL: night time flight and a full J cabin. Sharing that space with the person in the aisle was a little awkward, but when fully reclining and trying to go to sleep (I was window seat and therefore ‘top’) there’s a gap between the bed and fuselage of about 15-20cm. The pillow falls down there and it does feel a little like your body could partially as well.

Very poor product.

…redeemed only by peering through the curtain behind at the 3-3-3 layout PR have in whY on these flights. Normally an A330 in whY is 2-4-2, but this sub fleet of older A330s that PR runs, tends to be used for their MidEast flights where the bulk of pax are domestic overseas workers.

 

[henleybeach]

OMaaT has an article giving their opinion on this. Fortunately of these, only Euro business and BA are booked by me, and only for relatively short hops within Europe, on Award flights.

The World's Worst Business Class Seats: Here Are My Picks, Do You Agree?

Which airlines have the worst business class seats? Here's my take, though I'm sure many will disagree with my opinions.

onemileatatime.com

The biz seat I have liked least in recent years is Asiana from Almaty to Seoul - angled flat. I am OK with LATAM's 2-2-2 as I like lots of foot room and I chose an aisle.

Agree with Asiana business from Almaty to Seoul. It was the worst experience we have had, basically no padding left on the seats, felt like seat cloth on top of the mechanical components of the seat whilst being poked by components, you could barely sit in the seats. The seat cloth was worn and stained and a horrible yellow, and it was an angled.
It was in 2019, and at the time, a 5 Star startrax airline……..

 

[Pushka]

MH. If you want a single seat on the window then your feet are channeled into a narrow space when flat. If you don't select that row then the next row is two seats together. And between those seats is where the foot channel is.

 

[drron]

I really dislike SQs 777 J seat. Very uncomfortable.
Number 2 on my worst list is the old EK 777s. Too many of them in a row and again just uncomfortable.

 

[SYD]

Euro Biz probably doesn’t belong in the list that compares more lonhghaul products but yes, the coughty hard product does warrant special in the list of things that take the glamour out of flying.

As per the article, the VS/NZ “coffin class” really ought to be dead and buried now…

 

[Mattg]

I'm surprised the TK 777 J seats didn't get a mention. It's 2-3-2 and the middle seat has absolutely no privacy.

 

[RooFlyer]

I really dislike SQs 777 J seat. Very uncomfortable.

I forgot about those and agree. Only good for Award day flights (as SQ good availability).

 

[vetrade]

Agree with the article re Royal Air Maroc. Had 5 AT flights in Aug - Sep last year, all in J and the experience was underwhelming.
One thing which stood out was the fact that all drinks except the champagne were room temp; could not even get a glass of cold water on any flight.
The other thing we detested was that the FAs ignored my wife - it was as if she didn't exist. Things like the fact that they walked past without offering a bread roll during dinner service and she gave up asking for a cup of coffee after they failed to return with one twice. I got mine first try! We've noticed a similar thing on RJ in the past too where being a white woman gets you treated like you have an STD.

FCO - CMN (AT491) - B737. The J seats were abysmal and everything about the plane screamed "should have been scrapped 20 years ago

CMN - GRU (AT215 - 787-9). Seemed like a new plane and J was well appointed but the 10hr flight was continuously disrupted by a group of about 10 "locals" - 5 kids, their mother, 2 aged women and 2 nannies. The kids ran riot for the whole trip chasing each other around the cabin, yelling and one youngster running while carrying a baby lost hold of it dropped it on a couple trying to eat their dinner - food and drinks scattered while not a word of apology from any of the adults who watch it happen.

GRU - CMN (AT214) - another 787-9 so we expected similar plane to AT215 but this one was obviously older and with a different J seat layout. An overnight flight departing at 00.30am. Sleep was near impossible because the seat was uncomfortable no matter how you adjusted the recline.

RAK - CMN (AT408) - a RAM Express Atr 72 - simply cramped and horrible

CMN - DOH (AT216) - 787-9 - a 7.5hr flight which itself was OK but our airtags soon confirmed that my checked bag was left behind in CMN. We overnighted in DOH and connected with a flight to CMB, arriving at 5.45am where we had a driver booked to Sigiriya.. Turned out to be a Public Holiday in Sri Lanka and most of the shops were closed. Spent the rest of the day being taxied around trying to find clothes for a 100kg Aussie (me). Ended up with an abysmal haul of 2 pairs of shorts, some terrible undies and 2 Tee shirts. Did get the checked bag back intact but it took 10 days and by then I'd managed to buy a hat and a pair of long pants. I wasn't really surprised when my claim (and follow-up email) for modest compo of $550 for the clothes and a cabin case were ignored.

Safe to say AT are "never again".

 

[bcworld]

I can't claim they're the worst...but versus expectations, I absolutely hate the business class seats on SQ A380. I would take the older product on their 777 and long haul A350 before it any day.

The main issue is just as a seat and a bed it is ridiculously hard and unyielding. I found it impossible to get comfortable. Of course, away from the bulkheads, it also suffers from some of the same issues as SQ's other wide business class products with the offset footwell.

 

[Pushka]

Agree with the article re Royal Air Maroc. Had 5 AT flights in Aug - Sep last year, all in J and the experience was underwhelming.
One thing which stood out was the fact that all drinks except the champagne were room temp; could not even get a glass of cold water on any flight.
The other thing we detested was that the FAs ignored my wife - it was as if she didn't exist. Things like the fact that they walked past without offering a bread roll during dinner service and she gave up asking for a cup of coffee after they failed to return with one twice. I got mine first try! We've noticed a similar thing on RJ in the past too where being a white woman gets you treated like you have an STD.

FCO - CMN (AT491) - B737. The J seats were abysmal and everything about the plane screamed "should have been scrapped 20 years ago

CMN - GRU (AT215 - 787-9). Seemed like a new plane and J was well appointed but the 10hr flight was continuously disrupted by a group of about 10 "locals" - 5 kids, their mother, 2 aged women and 2 nannies. The kids ran riot for the whole trip chasing each other around the cabin, yelling and one youngster running while carrying a baby lost hold of it dropped it on a couple trying to eat their dinner - food and drinks scattered while not a word of apology from any of the adults who watch it happen.

GRU - CMN (AT214) - another 787-9 so we expected similar plane to AT215 but this one was obviously older and with a different J seat layout. An overnight flight departing at 00.30am. Sleep was near impossible because the seat was uncomfortable no matter how you adjusted the recline.

RAK - CMN (AT408) - a RAM Express Atr 72 - simply cramped and horrible

CMN - DOH (AT216) - 787-9 - a 7.5hr flight which itself was OK but our airtags soon confirmed that my checked bag was left behind in CMN. We overnighted in DOH and connected with a flight to CMB, arriving at 5.45am where we had a driver booked to Sigiriya.. Turned out to be a Public Holiday in Sri Lanka and most of the shops were closed. Spent the rest of the day being taxied around trying to find clothes for a 100kg Aussie (me). Ended up with an abysmal haul of 2 pairs of shorts, some terrible undies and 2 Tee shirts. Did get the checked bag back intact but it took 10 days and by then I'd managed to buy a hat and a pair of long pants. I wasn't really surprised when my claim (and follow-up email) for modest compo of $550 for the clothes and a cabin case were ignored.

Safe to say AT are "never again".

I can't wait for July then....but just a quick one to CDG in Y.

 

[drron]

I can't claim they're the worst...but versus expectations, I absolutely hate the business class seats on SQ A380. I would take the older product on their 777 and long haul A350 before it any day.

The main issue is just as a seat and a bed it is ridiculously hard and unyielding. I found it impossible to get comfortable. Of course, away from the bulkheads, it also suffers from some of the same issues as SQ's other wide business class products with the offset footwell.

Just goes to show we are all different. I can't get comfortable on SQ's 777 J seat but their A380 J seat I experienced for the first time 4 days ago and found it much more comfortable and drifted off easily.

 

[moa999]

Just goes to show we are all different

And equally in the love hate category is seemingly the Finnair seat (also on the leased QF aircraft)..

And just because of the naming I'd add Jetstar's Business recliner, though it's a perfectly good StarClass or premium seat.