SQ to launch premium economy

[addictedtraveller]

From Straits Times:

Singapore Airlines will launch a premium economy class on its flights progressively from the second half of next year, chief executive officer Goh Choon Phong announced Friday morning at a media briefing. He did not give further details but said: "When we set our mind to do something, it will be done well." The airline had previously said it had no plans to introduce this category of seats as it believed that the premium market would remain relevant

Article Link here.

Good news for those stuck in Economy due to cost cutting, but most likely bad news for those that like upgrades from economy to business.

[Jumbojet Lover]

SQ To Launch Premium Economy

They caved!

http://www.ausbt.com.au/singapore-ai...remium-economy

Singapore Airlines will launch a premium economy class in the second half of next year, the airline revealed this morning
...
Phong did not elaborate on the premium economy plans, only saying that "when we set our mind to do something, it will be done well."

By the way, "Phong" refers to CEO Goh Choon Phong. Last name mix-up by the journalist.

[Unionruler]

Wow that's good news. It only makes sense to do product line filling though--the price point of SQ J is kinda high. Wonder how similar or dissimilar it will be to what they had on the A345.

[Jumbojet Lover]

Wow that's good news. It only makes sense to do product line filling though--the price point of SQ J is kinda high. Wonder how similar or dissimilar it will be to what they had on the A345.

My guess is that it will be different. The A345 product was acceptable when it was launched in 2004. SQ's latest Y product probably has more functionality than their A345 Y+ product. And like SQ used to maintain, their Y product is good enough, no need for a Y+. So now they need an even better product.

Let's hope Economy does not become Y-.

[9V-JKL]

Good news. I liked what they had on the A345 and I'm sure this will be even better

I wonder if it'll be anything like scootbiz

[Durian]

Good news. I liked what they had on the A345 and I'm sure this will be even better

I wonder if it'll be anything like scootbiz

If it's like Scootbiz then SQ better worry... look what Turkish has done, they announced plans to withdraw their premium eco because it cannibalizes their J.
I've flown SIN-IST in J then IST-JFK in Y+ earlier this year, the Y+ is simply awesome, no wonder it emptied their J cabin. Have a look at my report here: http://flight-report.com/en/report-6541.html
[sorry in French but you have the pics].

On the way back from the same trip, I flew CX on HKG-SIN on the 333 in Y+, it's really average while TK's Y+ is wow (actually TK's premium eco is more a J- than a Y+)

[Kyo]

Considering the substantial price difference between paid Y and J on SQ, I, for one, am happy to hear this development and hope it's not Y+ in the vein of BA/CA

[9V-JKL]

Ah but TK J and Y+ are both 2-3-2... SQ Y+ will never be 1-2-1 like their C. I would imagine it to be likely 2-4-2 like most others.

My only wonder is where will the toilets be in the 77W for Y+. Y toilets now at at door 4. Will Y+ pax have to walk thru Y to get there?

[SQ228]

I'm not all that thrilled as in general their Y product is definitely very good and far better than many competitors. The question is whether the Y+ section's geographic space will be sourced from current J territory or whether it will substantially eat into the existing Y floorspace. Either answer will be bound to make one or the other group happy or annoyed.

While I can see it working very well on an A380, having 4 distinct seating classes on a 77W is a tricky balancing act and could make buying/selling the specific spaces far more complex.

[Durian]

Ah but TK J and Y+ are both 2-3-2... SQ Y+ will never be 1-2-1 like their C. I would imagine it to be likely 2-4-2 like most others.

My only wonder is where will the toilets be in the 77W for Y+. Y toilets now at at door 4. Will Y+ pax have to walk thru Y to get there?

As I said, TK's Y+ is closer to a J than to a Y, seat and catering included... and this extend to the washrooms... on the 77W (no Y+ on the 333), Y+ share with J, not with Y.

[MAN Flyer]

It was only a matter of time with everyone else going that way, I am a little surprised they haven't held out a little longer to be honest as you know how set in their ways they are at SQ.

[eminere™]

The next question is whether this might come at the expense of F/R, at least on some aircraft and/or on certain routes.

[iflyy]

Is anyone else wondering what this means for redemption rates?

[Dickson]

Its going to come from Y, not J or F. Read this in today's Business Times, comments made by Mak (name of some guy from SIA). Unfortunately, I do not have Internet access to BT so I cannot paste the comments here. Apparently, they're tantalized by what CX seemed to have successfully done - improved the yields of Y.

[SQ228]

If they really, really wanted to gain a leading edge, they could find a way to allow bookings that combine a mixture of Y and Y+ flights.

My standard flight is MEL-SIN-somewhere_in_Europe-SIN-MEL. To upgrade all of that to Y+ is likely to be too expensive, as my desire is to fly often and for less money on a quality airline and I don't fear long-hauls in Y like some people do.

BUT, almost always the final leg of my booking is SQ217, a SIN-MEL day flight. I loathe SQ217 so much- always packed solid with screaming kids and many passengers who feel they are "special". Chances of ever getting an empty seat next to you are basically nil.

Now if they allowed me to fly this leg in Y+ and the others in Y on the same ticket, then yes, they could extract extra money from me.