Premier Seats at a Lower Price

Whenever I fly coach, which is most of the time, I get a sinking feeling as I lug my bags through the business-class cabin. I look with envy on the wide, comfortable seats and ample legroom, then trudge to my cramped little seat back in steerage.

But when I recently boarded a flight from Washington Dulles International Airport to London, I had an entirely different experience. Though I was seated all the way at the back, I was still in business class.

In fact, every seat on the plane was business class.

The airline, Maxjet Airways Inc., is one of two start-ups -- the other is Eos Airlines -- that in November launched all-business-class service from New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport to London’s Stansted Airport. Maxjet last month expanded service from Dulles to Stansted.

Both airlines aim to serve business passengers to like destinations, but the similarities end there.

Maxjet’s focus is on a low-cost, international business-class experience. For example, a restricted fare with less than a week’s advance purchase from JFK to Stansted recently cost $1,501, about one-sixth the $9,109 for a business-class ticket on a legacy airline such as British Airways or United Airlines. (These fares may no longer be available.)

Maxjet targets price-sensitive business travelers from small and medium-size companies and high-end leisure travelers, though it also is seeing a fair number of corporate travelers, said Maxjet Chief Executive Gary Rogliano.

Maxjet has two Boeing 767s -- made in the 1980s -- that are outfitted with 102 business-class seats. These are, shall we say, the “classic” style of business class where the focus is on a larger, more comfortable seat as opposed to many of the newer ones that have bells and whistles such as massage and electronic adjustment options.

I flew on both of the planes, one outbound and the other inbound. They have new carpeting and seats that are upholstered in fresh leather. Stepping on board is like walking into a new luxury sports car. The pungent aroma of leather fills the cabin.

Eos, on the other hand, is focused less on lower fares and more on providing a high-end business-class flight experience.

“There are two strategies,” Eos Chief Executive Dave Spurlock said. “One is to compete on price and price alone, the other is to compete on price and product.”

Eos has adopted the latter strategy. It flies three Boeing 757s with 48 seats each.

And what seats they are. I sat in a mock-up of one at a conference in August. It is a lie-flat “suite” with 21 square feet of personal space. When the seat is upright, there is a small jump seat opposite it, enabling two passengers to have a semi-private conversation. I comfortably conducted an interview with Spurlock sitting in the jump seat at the conference.

Such luxury comes at a premium, but it is a substantial discount to the legacy airlines’ fares. An Eos ticket with less than a week’s advance for a fully refundable fare was $6,601. Not cheap, but one-third less than a legacy airline fare.

“I think Maxjet has an easier sell,” said Jared Blank, an industry analyst and publisher of the Online Travel Review. “They can both draw from people who are already flying business class and from people who are flying coach who want to pay a little bit extra for a lot more comfort.”

On my Maxjet flights were customers from both categories. In an informal appraisal, I estimated that about a third of the 32 outbound passengers were probably leisure travelers, two-thirds business.

Paul Newman, who works for an electronic components distributor and manufacturer in Llanwrtyd Wells, Wales, was returning to Stansted from a business trip in Washington. His last business-class flight to Washington was two years ago on United. When he researched fares for this trip, Maxjet’s was “by far” the cheapest business-class ticket he found. He said he paid about $1,800.

“This is very good value,” he said, holding a glass of champagne aloft in one hand as we chatted on board.

Through the end of May, Maxjet is offering a round-trip ticket between JFK or Dulles and Stansted for $999. Eos is offering a $2,950 fare from JFK to Stansted, compared with the $9,109 fare that, remarkably, was the same for British Airways, Virgin Atlantic Airways, United and American airlines between JFK and London’s Heathrow Airport.

For the moment, the legacies aren’t too worried.

“We’re always watching the competition,” United spokeswoman Robin Urbanski said. But she added that United was counting on its alliances and networks to get travelers not just from the East Coast to London, but also to destinations around the globe.

Eos and Maxjet hope to expand service to the West Coast, though neither has any firm plans at the moment. Many of Eos’ passengers are in the entertainment industry, making Los Angeles a prime market. Maxjet is eyeing San Jose, focusing on the high-tech industry there and near Stansted.

For now, Angelenos who want to experience either airline will have to arrive on the East Coast under their own power.

James Gilden can be reached at james.gilden@latimes.com. Read his blog at latimes.com/dailytraveler.