While details remain limited as of now, Cathay Pacific has revealed plans to introduce a new flat bed business class product on its regional aircraft…
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Cathay Pacific overhauling regional business class in 2026
During its 2023 annual results presentation, Cathay Pacific made an announcement that regional passengers on the airline will no doubt appreciate. Starting in 2026, the oneworld airline intends to introduce a new regional product on its Airbus A330 fleet. For the first time ever, Cathay Pacific will be introducing purpose-built flat beds for business class on these flights.
For context, currently Cathay Pacific’s regional business class consists of recliner seats in a 2-2-2 configuration. These seats don’t recline very much and have a hard shell design, and personally I don’t find them to be terribly comfortable for relaxing or sleeping.
It’s worth emphasizing that Cathay Pacific also largely flies long haul aircraft on regional routes, so it’s very common to get flat beds on these routes. That’s because the carrier’s long haul Airbus A330s, Airbus A350s, and Boeing 777s, often operate shorter flights between longer sectors.
So you may very well find yourself on an A330 with flat beds, but the distinction is that those aren’t intended to be regional aircraft.
Cathay Pacific currently has a fleet of 42 Airbus A330s, split between the regional and long haul aircraft. What has long been remarkable about this fleet is just how many variants Cathay Pacific has, as the fleet has five different layouts:
- One regional configuration features 42 recliner business class seats and 265 economy seats
- One regional configuration features 24 recliner business class seats and 293 economy seats
- One long haul configuration features 39 flat bed business class seats and 223 economy seats
- One long haul configuration features 28 flat bed business class seats and 265 economy seats
- One long haul configuration features 38 flat bed business class seats, 28 premium economy seats, and 214 economy seats
I have to imagine that part of the goal with this retrofit might be to standardize the A330 fleet a bit, as having so many variants can’t be efficient. So I’m curious if we might also see some long haul A330s converted into regional ones, or what.
What flat bed business class could Cathay Pacific introduce?
I’d argue that just about any new business class product on A330s that offers a flat bed would be a significant upgrade over what’s currently offered on these flights. However, I am curious about exactly which direction the airline takes.
I think the most efficient flat bed product that Cathay Pacific could introduce would be the Collins Aerospace Diamond seat, which is also in a 2-2-2 configuration. This is similar to what you’ll find on Gulf Air’s Airbus A321LRs, for example.
However, arguably regional business class within Asia is more competitive than ever before, and nowadays many airlines offer flat bed products with direct aisle access as the standard product in the region. For example, Singapore Airlines’ Boeing 787-10s are intended exclusively as regional aircraft, and that’s the Stelia Aerospace Symphony seat.
Similarly, Starlux Airlines’ Airbus A330-900neos are also intended as regional aircraft, and that’s the Safran Skylounge Core seat.
Personally I think it’s likely that Cathay Pacific will try to introduce something competitive with what other airlines are using in the region, even if the product has a materially larger footprint than the current one.
Bottom line
Cathay Pacific plans to introduce a new regional business class product, which will debut on Airbus A330s in 2026. So far the airline has only revealed that these planes will feature flat beds, so it’s anyone’s guess what seat the airline ends up introducing. I have to imagine that this will represent a significant upgrade, given the competition in the region.
What are you expecting from Cathay Pacific’s new regional business class on A330s?
So my complaints in all Cathay surveys paid off. The regional business seat is my pet peeve about Cathay. Why pay for it when I have the first class lounge as Diamond even when seated in economy while this so called business seat simply sucks. As a free upgrade a la US domestic first it would be acceptable but not paying for it.
I sat on CX's A330 regional J last year. It was worse than I remembered. The recliner seat was extremely uncomfortable (worse than domestic F), and the cabin looked very tired. The revamp is overdue.
It is interesting that you mostly talk about the product they are providing and not about the markets they serve and the markets or destinations that they may use such an aircraft for.
The type of seat they choose will depend on how dense the cabin will be. As it will be a regional aircraft, they want to keep the seat as light as possible. So it's possible that they select an off the shelf product with minimal customization akin to their A321neos unlike the Aria Suites which are heavily customized from the ground up. If they want to be consistent across the widebody fleet, they can always...
The type of seat they choose will depend on how dense the cabin will be. As it will be a regional aircraft, they want to keep the seat as light as possible. So it's possible that they select an off the shelf product with minimal customization akin to their A321neos unlike the Aria Suites which are heavily customized from the ground up. If they want to be consistent across the widebody fleet, they can always choose JPAs AIRTEK but a more toned-down version without the door; they claim to have the lightest seat so it does make sense when you think about it.
Way long overdue. CX got away with this for way too long, charging the same fare whether it’s full flat or regional seats. Those of you who do not see any value in this obviously have not flown midnight, Singapore/KL/CGK to Hong Kong, or occasionally due to aircraft swap, even Dubai to Hong Kong evening flights.
Interested in other peoples opinions, but personally I see little value in a flat bed for shorter (under 3-4 hours) flights. You won’t be getting much sleep anyway, and despite the luxurious feel, the flat beds are not super comfortable to sit in.
I miss the old fashioned business class cradle seats. They were amazing to sit in and pretty comfortable for a nap as well
The old recliner seats were quite good, but in my opinion, what made them so comfortable is definitely the amount of cushion they had. Nowadays, most recliner seats have way less amount of cushion compared to the old school recliner seats - some like CPA's current regional business class almost feels like a premium economy.
I've gotta agree that you don't really need a flat bed "itself" on such short flights though. It's the space that matters.
Agreed. 2+2+2 seating with comfy seat cushion and large 4K screen are all this type of route needs.
(Un)fortunately, competition has stepped up in the region with the likes of Singapore, Starlux, ANA and even China and EVA so that might force CXs hand to go for a 1-2-1 layout albeit a more "compact" version.
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That's because you're thinking about it from an origin-passenger's point of view.
A transfer-passenger coming off of a longhaul, whose internal clock thinks it's 3am (due to that being the time at his point of origin), would LOVE nothing more than having a flatbed on that regional flight, despite its length.
I can...
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That's because you're thinking about it from an origin-passenger's point of view.
A transfer-passenger coming off of a longhaul, whose internal clock thinks it's 3am (due to that being the time at his point of origin), would LOVE nothing more than having a flatbed on that regional flight, despite its length.
I can personally attest to that. Not an uncommon scenario at all, for a global connecting hub like HKG.
Until they fly it to CTS
Seems like CPA is doing what SIA did back in 2018... by 2026 (it would be funny to see Lufthansa Allegris still not in service by that point - which might actually happen) CPA is a high quality airline, but their regional business class has to be one of the worst in the region in terms of hardware. For the seats, Collins Diamond seats wouldn't be an ideal option - it's loosing its popularity in...
Seems like CPA is doing what SIA did back in 2018... by 2026 (it would be funny to see Lufthansa Allegris still not in service by that point - which might actually happen) CPA is a high quality airline, but their regional business class has to be one of the worst in the region in terms of hardware. For the seats, Collins Diamond seats wouldn't be an ideal option - it's loosing its popularity in wide-body planes. Given that CPA's new business class would also be in a reverse herringbone layout, it would be best to pick a staggered seat of any kind.
I'm not sure whether is it good idea to refurbish their A330s in 2026 - many their A330s are quite old, so buying 787s or A330neos could be better...
They'll be ordering replacements soon and will be getting them from 2028. Interestingly, they also want to use it for flights to Europe.
In the meantime, a lot of the A330s have plenty of life in them. Same with the 77Ws; they are looking into converting some 77Ws for regional use and the costs associated with removing the crew rests, etc.
There's something to be said on the efficiency front but I have noticed Cathay's premium cabins go out emptier on shorthaul flights these days, especially with regional configurations. The peculiar HK economy means that there's absolutely no issue filling a HKG-NRT plane during holiday season at US$3k RT per seat, though.