Today, air travel classes are well defined, sometimes featuring both First and Business Class on international or cross-country journeys. ir travel didn't start out that way and has evolved over the decades, as the number of passengers has increased dramatically since it all began. Early passenger planes were very noisy and extremely uncomfortable. As aircraft design improved, so did the passenger experience and the carriers tried to make flying as pleasant and appealing as possible. #FlyPanAm set the stage for long haul flying and pampered service. Its China Clipper took off from San Francisco Bay on the afternoon of October 21, 1936 with a pilot, co-pilot, radio operator and engineer, plus the cabin steward and only 9 passengers. Up until this point, no one had ever flown a commercial airliner across the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean. It was the inauguration of airline service to Honolulu and onwards to Manila. The airliner was the first of 3, Martin M-130 four-engined flying boats built for Pan American World Airways and all aboard were pampered and treated like royalty.
After the steward served cocktails at their seats, passengers entered the dining lounge. At this time only males were hired as attendants on overseas flights. They wore waist-length white jackets, white shirts, black ties and black trousers as they prepared aviation’s first hot meals at 7,000 feet. After conversation, often over cards, passengers then retired to their individual sleeping berths. Every one of them drifted off to sleep during this long haul flight on a flat bed. These were upper and lower berths, similar to those found on First Class Pullman railcars. Each bed was more than 7 feet long and was equipped with a reading light, call button and heavy curtains. When touching down in Manila on October 27 (after a 2-day stopover in Hawaii), the Martin aircraft had crossed 8,210 miles of ocean in approximately 59 hours and 48 minutes of flying time. This was an amazing feat for its day and was a public relations dream come true for Pan Am. It also established the standards for premium cabin service for which they became well known and which every other airline sought to emulate.
Following the Second World War, the majority of military aircraft were redesigned for use in commercial aviation. Airlines then began to seek higher yields and so cheaper fares were introduced in the late1940s which separated those passengers willing to spend more from those who were not. With the introduction of the Jet Age in the late 1950s, the 2-class configuration became the norm with more than 200 persons flying in one aircraft. Of course, the sleeping berths disappeared but First Class featured fewer and wider seats with greater comfort along with gourmet meals and fine wines, champagnes and spirits. The seats were located in the front of the aircraft so that these passengers would hear less engine noise and take less time to exit the aircraft.
When Pan Am, the leader in commercial aviation for much of the 20th Century, became the launch customer for the Boeing 747 in early 1969, it brought real glamour back to the premium cabin. While the new aircraft carried approximately 350 passengers, only 18 were seated in the exclusive First Class cabin and were offered use of their own private lounge up the spiral staircase, just aft of the cockpit. Here, these lucky travelers would enjoy cocktails and dinner, oftentimes with musicians, but always with solicitous service while flying above the clouds and across the oceans.
Roughly 10 years later, Business Class emerged as a hybrid between the 2 cabins. The debate continues as to whether #British_Airways was first with the introduction of their "Club Class" in October 1978 or #Qantas which continues to claim they launched the world’s first Business Class in 1979. Regardless of which carrier gets the prize, the concept “took off” and the product was continually refined in an attempt to differentiate each airline from its competitors. While not nearly as expensive as First Class but substantially more than an economy ticket, Business Class offered wider and more comfortable seats and an attentive cabin crew with an enhanced meal service. (Sound familiar?) British Airways upped the ante considerably in 1996 with the introduction of fully flat beds in First Class and surprised everyone yet again by bringing the concept to its Business Class product in the year 2000. It proved to be a game changer for the industry.
Airlines around the globe rushed to feature lie flat beds in their Business Class hard products. When restaurant-style dining was factored into the equation, the major difference in flying Business Class versus First Class was often just the width of the seats but always the number of passengers in the respective cabins. Beginning in December of 1998, #Delta eliminated its First Class product entirely on their long haul international flights in favor of a 2-class configuration. Their former First and Business cabins were
transitioned into a single section they called Business Elite (now Delta One).The carrier introduced the world’s first, all-suite Business Class product when its new flagship aircraft, the Airbus A350, went into service in 2017. Each aircraft features 32 suites with full length doors at every seat, plus sliding privacy dividers between center suites and customizable in-suite ambient lighting.
#United continued offering an International First Class product until fairly recently when it began phasing that out in favor of its new hybrid called Polaris Business Class. First introduced in December 2016, Polaris was United Airlines most significant product transformation in more than a decade. Each lie flat seat has direct aisle access and the unique seat design and placement allowed the airline to maintain at least the same number of seats it had in its earlier cabin designs (both legacy United and Continental). Polaris was introduced with much fanfare, but some of the bells and whistles have since been diminished. Passengers no longer receive the upgraded wine experience initially offered (United claimed they were going through too much wine) and some of the bedding has been scaled back (there simply was not enough space for passengers to store these bulky items when not in use). Exclusive Polaris Business Lounges have (or soon will) open in all United hub cities. Access to these lounges is only available to those flying in the carrier's Business Class and patrons are treated to private daybeds, spa-like showers and chef-inspired hot meals served in a restaurant setting. Premium sparkling wines and spirits are also offered.
#AmericanAir has phased out most of its International First Class product with the exception of that offered on its B777-300 aircraft, This is the flagship of the American Airlines fleet but with only 18, they fly limited routes between the US and Asia, Australia, Europe and South America. The First Class cabin features 8 seats (4 abreast in only 2 rows). Having flown American's 777-300 in First from #DFWAirport to #hkairport, I will admit the cabin feels very private and I enjoyed the pajamas but the service and food choices make it difficult to distinguish it from their Business Class product which features a very nice reverse herringbone seating layout.
Outside of the US, many international airlines have retained their First Class product. For most of these carriers, it's a reflection of pride in their national cultures. Some, like #SingaporeAir and #emirates have taken the experience to new "heights." (More on some of those remarkable flights in another post.) However, it appears those airlines which have adopted the Business Class model exclusively, don’t regret their decisions.
Until next time…safe travels.
I really appreciate the research you must have done and the accompanying photos to tell the story of first class traveling. It is a delight to read!!
Well George, I have to say that your overview of the upmarket options available to air travelers was First Class...