New Finnair Business Class & Premium Economy: Now On All Jets

In early 2022, Finnair announced some major passenger experience upgrades, as the airline planned to refresh the cabins on all of its long haul aircraft. In addition to introducing a new business class, the airline also finally introduced a premium economy cabin, which it didn’t previously have. There’s now a major update when it comes to the availability of this product.

Finnair completes wide body retrofit project

Finnair has announced that it has completed its wide body aircraft retrofit project, representing a total investment of €200 million. That means you’ll now find the new cabins on all of Finnair’s Airbus A330s and Airbus A350s.

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Finnair deserves credit for the pace at which it completed this project, as it was just over two years from when the first aircraft was reconfigured, to when the project was done. Finnair has a total of 25 wide body aircraft, including eight Airbus A330-300s and 17 Airbus A350-900s.

In an era where there are so many supply chain constraints, that’s a seriously impressive retrofit timeline. Admittedly Finnair isn’t as big as carriers like British Airways or Lufthansa, but still, that pace is faster than I think most of us would have expected.

Here’s how Ole Orvér, Finnair’s Chief Commercial Officer, describes this project:

“After just two years, it is fantastic to have completed the rollout of our new award-winning long-haul cabin.”

“Since its launch in 2022, customer feedback on our revolutionary Business Class seat and brand-new Premium Economy cabin has been excellent, so we are proud to be able to offer the renewed cabin on flights to all our long-haul destinations. 

“We also know our customers value consistency and reliability, so to offer a uniform cabin concept across our whole fleet is a huge step on our customer experience journey. Customer satisfaction with our long-haul cabins has increased significantly with the cabin renewal.”

Details of Finnair’s new A330 & A350 cabins

Let me briefly recap the new cabins that Finnair has introduced on its wide body aircraft, for those who haven’t had the chance to fly on them. As a reminder, I’ve reviewed Finnair’s new business class, and this is indeed a pretty innovative product. While it’s not my favorite business class seat in the world, I do really like it, on balance.

Finnair’s new business class seat

Finnair has introduced the Collins Aerospace AirLounge seat in business class, for which the airline is the launch customer. As it’s described, this isn’t a traditional aircraft seat, but rather it takes inspiration from lounge furniture. The seat is designed to maximize comfort, space, and freedom to move.

Here’s how some of the seat’s key features are described:

• The seat’s fixed contoured shell with no recline enables a wide variety of sitting and sleeping positions
• You can sit at different angles, rest your feet on the ottoman, or use infill panels to create a large flat surface
• A mattress and duvet turn the space into a comfortable bed, and you can use the cushy pillows to relax in a variety of sitting positions
• The high cocoon shell of the seat provides privacy, while the divider between central seats can be lowered when traveling with a companion
• The lighting options in the seat allow tailoring the ambiance of every customer’s own “nest”
• Along with a customized lamp that doubles as a reading light, a do not disturb light is included if privacy is desired
• The cabin features new mood lighting intended to combat the impacts of jetlag
• The design scheme is inspired by Nordic nature, complete with the northern lights as the cabin is dimmed for sleep
• There are various storage options, including spaces for personal items, laptops, and all pillows and blankets, and they can all be used for taxi, takeoff, and landing
• The flexible table can be used to read, dine, or work, and each seat comes with USB-A, USB-C, PC power, and wireless mobile charging
• The inflight entertainment system comes with a new, more user-friendly and customized interface with a wider 18″ screen

Below are some pictures of Finnair’s new business class product.

Below is a video of the new seat, which is extremely useful given how unusual this seat is, as it doesn’t recline.

Finnair’s new premium economy product

Not only has Finnair refreshed its business class product, but the airline has also introduced an all-new premium economy product, which is a cabin the airline didn’t previously offer. Finnair’s new premium economy product is the Vector seat from HAECO, and Finnair is also the launch customer for that product.

Here are some of the key details about Finnair’s new premium economy:

• The seat features 50% more space than economy class, and there are at most 26 seats in the cabin
• The seat features memory foam cushions, 8″ of recline, waterfall leg rest, and a six-way headrest
• There’s dedicated storage for laptops and small personal items
• There’s a large and sturdy single leaf meal tray for work and dining, as well as individual reading lights
• There’s USB-A and PC power outlets
• Each seat features a redesigned inflight entertainment system with 13″ wide screens
• In terms of service, premium economy features two meal services as well as a selection of drinks throughout the flight; the first meal service is in three courses, while a lighter meal is served before landing

Below are some pictures of Finnair’s new premium economy product.

Finnair’s economy class refresh

While I wouldn’t get too excited, there are also some minor changes that have been made to Finnair’s long haul economy class experience. This includes:

• New lighter seats
• Enhanced ergonomics, personal stowage options, USB-A and USB-C connectivity, and a larger inflight entertainment screen with an updated user interface

Note that this has only been introduced on A330s, plus Finnair’s newest A350s. Meanwhile Finnair’s older A350s have received new seat covers and an updated IFE experience.

Bottom line

Finnair has introduced an all-new long haul experience, including a refreshed business class product, a new premium economy cabin, and some minor refreshes in economy. The first jet with the new cabins entered service in the spring of 2022, and just over two years later, you’ll now find this product on all long haul aircraft.

Finnair should be commended for the pace at which it rolled out this product, as there aren’t many airlines that have been able to completely overhaul their long haul experience in such a short timeframe.

What do you make of Finnair’s new long haul cabins?