3 ms·

>Alternatively just offer a new seat class for taller people. If you're over 6' then you can sit in an economy seat with 3" more pitch for $100 more. No extra "

by eurleif 12y ago

>Alternatively just offer a new seat class for taller people. If you're over 6' then you can sit in an economy seat with 3" more pitch for $100 more. No extra "free" baggage, no better food, no express security line, just those 3" and nothing else. Aren't you describing United's Economy Plus seats, and other airlines' equivalents?

Someone1234 12y ago
No, I am not. I don't fly United as they're terrible but every other airline I've flown on offer more than just legroom in Economy Plus/Comfort/Premium Economy. For example Delta: Priority boarding, free alcohol, better snacks, sleep kit. British Airways: Better food, larger drinks menu, more "free" baggage, power plugs Virgin Atlantic: Dedicated check in desk, priority boarding, free newspaper/drinks, amenity kit, additional "free" bag And so on. Most come with additional perks. Plus the cost is quite a bit more. A £730 return flight is £1100 on Premium Economy, 50% more expensive! Just for leg room. That's a lot of money.
- bjterry 12y ago
  Unbundling the value of the leg room and the value of the perks would reveal that people pay essentially nothing for those extra perks. It's not like if they had a "leg" package and a "better food, priority boarding, etc." package, that the latter would be 50% of the premium and the former 50% of the premium, probably more like 90/10 (and notably, all of those other things cost essentially nothing for the airline to provide). They offer those perks as an enticement so travelers will feel like they are getting more stuff. Of course, you aren't even really paying for just more legroom. It's also used as price discrimination since invariably the Economy Plus seats are the last seats booked. So you are really paying for a combination of legroom and the flexibility to purchase your flight closer to the departure date. I don't even have an estimate on what would be the split if you could unbundle this fact, but eyeballing some flights in the next couple days between SFO and London or SFO and New York, all the economy seats on United are full but there are still 7-10 seats available in Economy Plus.

by eurleif 12y ago

Someone1234 12y ago

No, I am not. I don't fly United as they're terrible but every other airline I've flown on offer more than just legroom in Economy Plus/Comfort/Premium Economy. For example Delta: Priority boarding, free alcohol, better snacks, sleep kit. British Airways: Better food, larger drinks menu, more "free" baggage, power plugs Virgin Atlantic: Dedicated check in desk, priority boarding, free newspaper/drinks, amenity kit, additional "free" bag And so on. Most come with additional perks. Plus the cost is quite a bit more. A £730 return flight is £1100 on Premium Economy, 50% more expensive! Just for leg room. That's a lot of money.

bjterry 12y ago
Unbundling the value of the leg room and the value of the perks would reveal that people pay essentially nothing for those extra perks. It's not like if they had a "leg" package and a "better food, priority boarding, etc." package, that the latter would be 50% of the premium and the former 50% of the premium, probably more like 90/10 (and notably, all of those other things cost essentially nothing for the airline to provide). They offer those perks as an enticement so travelers will feel like they are getting more stuff. Of course, you aren't even really paying for just more legroom. It's also used as price discrimination since invariably the Economy Plus seats are the last seats booked. So you are really paying for a combination of legroom and the flexibility to purchase your flight closer to the departure date. I don't even have an estimate on what would be the split if you could unbundle this fact, but eyeballing some flights in the next couple days between SFO and London or SFO and New York, all the economy seats on United are full but there are still 7-10 seats available in Economy Plus.