Airlines Turning 1st Class Into Cloud 9

First class is getting classier--the food is getting fancier, the wines rarer, the service more pampering.

Earlier this year, for example, Air France and British Airways introduced sumptuous restaurant-style meal service--so you can order what you want when you want it--and redesigned seats that recline into horizontal “sky beds.”

Japan Air Lines has installed an extra “JAL Sky Massage” seat and is adding oversized lavatories to some of its first-class cabins.

Although foreign carriers have moved first, U.S. airlines are implementing changes as well, all seeking to capture the loyalties of an important--and growing--segment of their customers.

“With the globalization of the economy, more and more business travelers are flying increasingly longer distances,” said Wido Schaefer, president of Los Angeles-based Travel Store Inc. “Business travelers are also quickening the pace of their travel, such as a round trip to New York in 36 hours or flying back and forth from Los Angeles to Asia in three or four days. These travelers really value . . . comfort and pampering.”

Frequent travelers, of course, are pleased.

“When I am flying off out of Los Angeles to see a client, I appreciate the first-class cabin’s space, quiet and privacy so I can organize my thoughts and review my presentations,” said Peter J. Miscovich, who flew more than 250,000 miles last year as president of Interior Space International, a Los Angeles-based commercial interior design firm. “When I return home after several days of back-to-back meetings, I’m usually tired, so I’m grateful I can relax and enjoy some of the first-class creature comforts. Sometimes, it’s just nice to push back the seat and read.”

The battle for high-yield international first-class passengers is heating up. United Airlines has added faxing service and upgraded meals and wines.

“We will introduce other major cabin improvements this fall,” said Mark Liberman, a United vice president at Los Angeles International Airport.

American Airlines isn’t far behind.

“We are presently conducting research to learn exactly what our first-class passengers want,” spokesman Bill Dreslin said. “We are also studying what the competition is doing.”

A decade ago, first class seemed like an endangered species. On domestic flights, many U.S. carriers had reduced the size of their first-class cabins, pushed the remaining seats closer together and cut back on meal and beverage services.

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On international flights, business class seemed to be taking over. A dozen airlines eliminated first class on these long-haul routes in favor of an enhanced hybrid of business and first class, which offered many (but not all) first-class amenities, usually at a business-class fare.

In the 1990s, first class started making a comeback, with more seats and services on both international and domestic flights.

For example, Phoenix-based America West, which had previously offered first class on only a few of its flights, installed such cabins in all its planes.

Several new discount airlines, such as Midway and Reno, offer variations of first class on many of their flights. Even Shuttle by United includes an eight-seat first-class cabin in its 737 fleet.

What kind of passenger uses first class?

“Today, our typical first-class passenger is a 47-year-old man traveling on business,” said Sandy Gardiner, a British Airways spokesman. “Eighty-two percent of first-class passengers are male. Seventy-three percent travel for business.”

A recent United survey shows that such passengers rank comfort first and consider attendant responsiveness, air quality and on-time performance very important. Food was mentioned less often.

“On the typical 747,” said Randy Petersen, publisher of InsideFlyer magazine, “the first-class passenger has 600% to 700% more space than the usual coach passenger.”

But there are other, newer benefits of first class.

On international trips, these perks can include a chauffeur-driven car to the airport, a separate first-class check-in counter and a pass to the airline’s local airport club (such as American’s Admirals Club, Delta’s Crown Room or United’s Red Carpet Club), where passengers can wait in relative comfort.

At a handful of international gateways, such as New York’s JFK and London’s Heathrow, some carriers operate their own elegant first-class or VIP lounges, which do not sell memberships like the domestic carriers’ clubs do. The champagne starts flowing here. Caviar and smoked salmon are often available. Telephone calls may be free--to anywhere in the world.

Each airline offers its own special services and amenities. At JFK, Virgin Atlantic Airways provides a complimentary hair salon and a music room with hundreds of compact discs. United has a private jetway at JFK so that moguls and celebrities can board some flights in privacy.

At major international airports such as Heathrow, some airlines have private arrival lounges as well, where passengers can eat breakfast, make telephone calls, shower and have their clothes pressed and shoes shined for free. They can even rest in separate “snooze zones,” a favorite perk for passengers who must wait several hours before making a connecting flight.

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First-class passengers are sometimes greeted on arrival by an airline concierge who escorts them through an expedited immigration process. They are frequently offered complimentary limousine rides into the city.

Of course, first class doesn’t come cheap. The one-way fare from LAX to JFK is $1,478. The one-way fare from LAX to Tokyo is $3,261. Usually, all major airlines post the same list fare on the same route.

But that’s not the last word. Air fares are typically lower to Asia than to Europe on a cost-per-mile basis. The fare from LAX to London is $4,172--for a distance of 5,456 miles. The fare from LAX to Hong Kong is $2,715--for 7,246 miles.

Although first class is never cheap, savvy passengers can find deals. On the international front, some carriers offer 2-for-1 tickets during slow seasons. Some credit cards, such as the invitation-only American Express Platinum Card, provide 2-for-1 international first-class tickets on selected airlines.

A frequent practice is a complimentary international upgrade to first class when you purchase a full-fare business-class ticket. Sometimes the upgrade is available at the time of purchase.

Finally, many passengers use frequent-flier mileage, not money, to get into the front cabin, although it eats up a lot of miles. On American and United, for example, one first-class ticket to Europe “costs” 100,000 miles, and two tickets for the same itinerary cost 160,000 miles. But some travelers prefer to buy a business-class ticket and then use fewer miles (typically 40,000 per ticket on international flights) to upgrade into first class and still receive frequent-flier miles for the flight.

With all these deals, savvy travelers (and airline bean counters) are likely to ask: Does first class really make a profit?

“That depends on the airline,” said InsideFlyer’s Petersen. “Some European carriers, like British Air and SwissAir, make a lot of money on first class. Ditto for some Asian airlines. By contrast, many U.S. carriers don’t make money on a revenue basis, because they offer so many opportunities to upgrade into the front cabin.

“Over the long term, however, the U.S. carriers profit from a year-in, year-out relationship with these frequent fliers,” he said. “And it’s first-class perks that help forge that loyalty in this heavily competitive business.”

Charles Lockwood, author of seven books about architecture and cities, is a frequent traveler based in Los Angeles. If you have experiences to share or suggestions for Executive Travel, please write: Executive Travel Editor, Business Editorial, Los Angeles Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles, CA 90053; fax (213) 237-7837; or e-mail business@latimes.com