Let’s not lie. Flying long haul in Economy class is the worst. We’re not being ungrateful. Of course the longer-term experience of travel makes up for the short term pain, but aside from the price, there’s really a lot left to be desired when it comes to spending prolonged periods of time in confined conditions with a plane full of people.
Thankfully one airline is doing something to ease the pain in Economy. Aiming to put the fun back into flying Economy class, Virgin Atlantic has implemented a range of improvements.
With Economy accounting for 75 per cent of passengers on board Virgin’s latest 787-9 Dreamliner planes, according to Gia Acitelli, Regional General Manager for South East Asia, Australia and New Zealand, Virgin Atlantic is focused on improving the flying experience for Economy passengers. Adding, “we believe it’s important to offer these travellers enhanced services and the latest technologies to ensure their comfort and enjoyment during long-haul flights.”
So what’s changed? For starters the 787-9 Dreamliners are all fitted with the best-in-class seats that offer more leg room, wider aisles and increased storage space. Amenity kits are still provided for overnight flights and you can expect after dinner chocolates and retro style usherette ice-cream service to rival that of a cinema’s.
The real high point of the journey though is surely the innovative and intuitive new lighting technology. The revolutionary systems ensure passengers board, eat, relax and sleep in the optimal lighting. With the various colours of light calculated to adjust to the destination’s time zone throughout the flight, this is said to help to reduce jetlag, a noble aim if ever there was one.
And just when you thought it couldn’t get any better, an eight-minute ‘sunrise’ sequence has even been designed to gradually wake travellers in preparation for them disembarking into the new time zone. Which leaves only one question; can I have that at home please?
See inside Virgin Atlantic’s new and improved Economy class cabin.
How do you decide which airline to fly long haul? Is it only based on price or do you take into account other factors? Why not tell us in the comments.
