‘Business plus’ suites for American, United

Having done away with first class in favour of a vastly beefed-up business class proposition, American Airlines and United Airlines look set to upgrade a handful of business class seats with even more comfort and convenience.

Those seats are in the very front row of the business class cabin, where there’s typically extra space facing the bulkhead wall – and it’s become the in thing for airlines to monetise this Row 1 proposition by adopting it into a ’business plus’ product.

JetBlue’s A321LR Mint Studio, Virgin Atlantic’s A330neo Retreat Suite, Lufthansa’s Allegris Suites and Air New Zealand’s Business Premiere Luxe are all examples of giving the first row of business class something extra – and making it something passengers will pay extra for.

Now American Airlines is jumping on the ‘business plus’ bandwagon and United Airlines is also scoping out the turf.

American Airlines Flagship Suite Preferred

Oneworld member American Airlines is already upgrading its Boeing 787-9 and 777-300 fleets with a new Flagship Suite business class later this year, which will also replace first class on the 777s.

American is upgrading all its Boeing 787s and 777s to these new Flagship Suites in business class.

These Flagship Suites will tick all the boxes for a modern business class, beyond the expected 1-2-1 layout and lie-lat bed: think sliding privacy doors, large 4K video screens with Bluetooth audio streaming, wireless charging and more.

Four Flagship Suite Preferred berths will occupy Row 1 on the Boeing 777s and 787s.

But the first row of the Flagship business class cabin will be transformed into what American calls a “distinguished front row experience” in the shape of the Flagship Suite Preferred seat.

Four Flagship Suite Preferred berths will occupy Row 1 on the Boeing 777s and 787s.

While identical to the rest of the Flagship Suites, each of the four Flagship Suite Preferred berths will embrace the extra space to the bulkhead wall – albeit without a companion seat for dining – while adding special touches such as a Nest Bedding mattress pad and pyjamas, a throw blanket and a memory foam lumbar pillow.

The Flagship Suite Preferred berths will make the most of extra room and storage space.

There’ll also be what American describes as “an exclusive amenity kit featuring additional skincare products from Thirteen Lune by Joanna Vargas and Relevant.”

However, food and drink served in the Preferred seat will remain the same as other Flagship Suites.

How American Airlines will divvy up amenities in its Flagship Suites business class cabins.

American is certain to charge a premium for these four Preferred seats, but it’s not known if this will be as a paid seat selection or upgrade from standard business class, or if the Preferred suites will be bundled into a revamped version of American’s Flagship Business Plus fares which include first class check-in and access to the ‘first class’ dining room at Flagship Lounges.

Access to the Flagship Lounge first class dining room could be a perk of your Flagship Suite Preferred booking.

United Airlines Polaris Plus

In addition to evaluating an upgraded Polaris business class suite with sliding doors, United Airlines is now testing the waters for a Polaris Plus product.

In a survey sent to selected Mileage Plus members, the Star Alliance airline notes it is “considering the introduction of a limited number of new seats within the Polaris business class cabin. These seats would be more spacious than the standard Polaris seats. In addition to the more spacious seat, United is exploring premium amenities that would only be offered to customers in the upgraded seats.”

United could also roll out an upgraded Polaris Plus experience in business class.

The survey lays out several scenarios where a passenger could ’upgrade’ to this Polaris Plus experience, in one case suggesting prices from US$300 to US$650 for “a 14-hour flight that departs at 11am” where the initial Polaris ticket cost US$2,500.

Some of the suggested Polaris Plus extras include

• private check-in
• being able to skip the airing list for a table in the Polaris Lounge dining room
• being first to board the plane
• ‘better quality’ Polaris pyjamas
• a ‘first class-style’ amenity kit
• an exclusive pre-order menu, additional courses offered onboard, and every dish hand-delivered 
• a Press for Champagne button at the seat

A 'Push for Champagne' button..?

As with so many airline surveys, while this provides a valuable insight into the airline’s thinking, it doesn’t mean any or all of this will eventuate.

But it would certainly help United level up against arch-rival American Airlines and its Flagship business class.

As for the third member of the US Big Three, Delta Air Lines will open its first dedicated business class lounge at Nw York’s JFK airport in June.

The SkyTeam member is promising an airport experience closer to what you might find at your favourite chic hotel or restaurant, and intended to complement its Delta One suites in the sky.