Over the past decade or so, we’ve seen premium economy become an increasingly popular cabin offered by airlines. As economy seats have gotten tighter and business class seats have gotten more spacious, there’s a market for those looking for something in the middle.
Star Alliance carrier Thai Airways is the latest airline to embrace this concept, as the airline will progressively be rolling out a premium economy product.
Thai Airways’ plans to offer premium economy
Thai Airways recently revealed plans to introduce a premium economy cabin on most of its long haul aircraft. This will primarily come in two forms:
- Thai Airways plans to reconfigure its Boeing 777-300ER fleet, including adding a premium economy cabin on all aircraft; the airline has a fleet of 17 of these jets
- Thai Airways plans to introduce premium economy on its future Boeing 787-9 deliveries; the airline has up to 80 of these on order, including 45 firm orders and 35 options, with deliveries expected to start in 2027
Thai Airways’ introduction of premium economy sure will be a gradual process, given that the airline doesn’t even yet have a timeline for reconfiguring 777s, and the 787 deliveries will only start in a few years. The airline hasn’t yet revealed what premium economy product it will offer on these jets.
It’s always challenging to add premium economy to a fleet, given that it takes years, and it’s hard to sell the product efficiently until the fleet is beefed up. For example, if you’re traveling between Europe and Australia via Bangkok, you don’t want to pay for a premium economy ticket, only to end up in economy on one long flight.
Thai Airways’ premium economy on ex-Virgin Atlantic A330s
Even ahead of Thai Airways’ plans to introduce a purpose-built premium economy product, the airline will start offering this cabin on some aircraft acquired from other airlines. Thai Airways has been picking up some secondhand aircraft to fuel its growth, after retiring too many jets during the pandemic.
For example, the airline has just acquired two Airbus A330-300s from Virgin Atlantic, and those have a premium economy cabin. As a result, Thai Airways plans to actually sell that cabin on flights operated by these planes.
These A330s are initially flying to Delhi (DEL), Fukuoka (FUK), and Mumbai (BOM). Presumably those aren’t necessarily the markets with the highest premium economy demand, but rather they’re just the markets where the airline feels the A330 is the best fit, and the airline might as well try to monetize the premium economy cabin.
Onboard these flights, passengers can expect a 48-seat premium economy cabin, in a 2-3-2 configuration. Seats feature 38″ of pitch, 21″ of width, 7″ of recline, 10.5″ touchscreen displays, four-way adjustable headrests, and pull down footrests.
While details are limited, Thai Airways is promising premium economy passengers can enjoy “specially curated meals and beverages” and dedicated amenity kits, though there are no details beyond that.
Bottom line
Thai Airways is the latest airline to introduce premium economy, which is an exciting development for the carrier, and follows the industry trend. This is initially launching on A330s that have been acquired from Virgin Atlantic, but the product will also be reconfigured on existing 777-300ERS, and installed on newly delivered 787-9s.
This is a positive development, I’d say, though given Thai Airways’ fondness for aircraft swaps, the rollout of this could prove to be a bit tricky.
What do you make of Thai Airways’ plans to introduce premium economy?
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