LATAM plans to introduce a premium economy product on part of its wide body fleet. It might seem like the airline is late to the game, but at least regionally, that’s not the case.
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LATAM plans Premium Comfort cabin for Dreamliners
Currently, the only premium economy product that LATAM offers is on its narrow body short haul flights, where the airline markets the forward cabin as such. As of now, the airline doesn’t have premium economy on any of its long haul flights, though that will be changing.
As of the first half of 2027, LATAM plans to introduce a premium economy product on its fleet of 41 Boeing 787 Dreamliners, including 787-8s and 787-9s. Currently plans just call for premium economy on that aircraft type, and not for this to be installed on Boeing 767s and Boeing 777s. It’s not surprising that it’ll take a while until the first plane is reconfigured, given the current lead time for seating products.
LATAM will market its premium economy as Premium Comfort, and the product will be the Recaro PL3530 seat. The seats are expected to feature 40″ of pitch, 8″ of recline, 16″ 4K screens, bluetooth audio pairing, AC and USB-C charging, and more. Those are some very spacious cabins, because the industry standard for premium economy is closer to 38″.
Here’s how Paulo Miranda, LATAM’s VP of Customers, describes this:
“Premium Comfort reflects our deep understanding of our customers’ evolving needs and our commitment to providing more options so every passenger can travel the way they want. It is a product that combines comfort, space, and high-level service with exceptional value, and it also represents a statement of how we envision the future of flying from South America to the world: a journey where privacy, design, and the warmth of our region come together to create a unique experience.”
My take on LATAM’s Premium Comfort plans
It sure seems like LATAM is just playing catch-up here by introducing premium economy, as this has been an industry trend for well over a decade now. Given that Delta invested in LATAM years ago, and the two airlines have a joint venture, you’d think that introducing premium economy would’ve been a priority earlier on.
What’s interesting is the geographical inconsistency when it comes to introducing premium economy. For example, in Latin America, LATAM will actually become the first airline to offer premium economy on long haul flights. You won’t find such a cabin on Aerolineas Argentinas, Aeromexico, Azul, Avianca, etc.
LATAM has been investing considerably in its Dreamliner fleet, though the process of updating these planes hasn’t exactly been smooth. First LATAM started updating its Dreamliners with new business class seats. Then the airline introduced new economy seats. Then the airline introduced new business class seats yet again. And now we’re seeing premium economy…
Bottom line
LATAM plans to introduce a premium economy cabin on long haul flights as of the first half of 2027. Specifically, the airline will install this cabin on 41 Dreamliners, as part of a $100 million investment. While it might seem like LATAM is late to the game with introducing this product, it’s still ahead of competitors in the region. LATAM’s 787s will be some pretty swanky planes, once all is said and done…
What do you make of LATAM’s Premium Comfort plans?
PE seats are getting a lot better.
I wonder if we'll reach a point where PE becomes the old style 2-3-2 or 2-4-2 layflat business class.
I could see that being very valuable for people purely focused on the sleep aspect and nothing else.