onlySIA

I am reluctant to risk SQ PEY as a paying customer. SQ has excellent Y compared to many airlines, and a comparatively high standard of J. But all reviews I read make their PEY sound very average and not as premium as I would expect. And the design of the leg rest is hopeless, no support at all for your legs. The reading light is a nice touch though.

brissypete

For me personally the main reason for booking PE (which I did for SIN-FRA-SIN as part of a BNE-SIN-FRA-SIN-BNE itinerary last year) is extra space and more comfortable seat. I like window seats and in PE it is much easier to get out if someone is seated in the aisle seat. Both flights I took were full in PE.

I also enjoyed the excellent IFE screen although the IFE was a bit buggy at times, the noise cancelling headsets were a great addition too.

Book the Cook was nice but the choices could be better, I do agree it would be good if the drinks service was better timed for those using BTC.

I couldn't care less about curtains and seperate toilets as I love going for walks during the flight and often will go the toilets down the back as usually less busy and the walk is good.

I did have champagne offered on both flights, can't remember if pre or after takeoff though.

cavemanzk

Well some airlines seem to treat PE like it is in an restaurant, NZ serves the same meals in J/PE just the PE version is more tray bassed than in J. Although they still bring out the main course after the tray etc, and have a couple of crew just for the PE cabin. Therefore you're never short of being offered an drink etc.

For example here is an meal that NZ offers in PE.



Value of an an curtain can be huge, it keeps down the foot traffic into the PE cabin and offers an sense of privacy from Y. If SQ have of installed toilets for PE it would of helped too.

phunc

And VS.

NZ and VS are probably the only two W class seats I'd pay for.

For VS, separate checkin, separate boarding, better service, quick welcome drink, cabin specific toilets, help yourself mini bar (they call it a wonder-wall on the 789) more points and miles to make it a more appealing...plus the bigger roomier seat.

demue

+1. Product is pretty decent (sure some things could be improved, but that's true for every other PEY product out there), but pricing is disconnected from market IMHO. Sure on some routes like LHR / SYD it may work, but in general it is too high versus SQ Y or other carriers options in PEY or even J.

jjjohn

having testing the seat in one of their roadshow, already felt this was a fail product.
the seat was not comfortable at all.

cavemanzk

The main problem with PE is there is no defined standard across the industry, you have NZ/VS who are offering an 'Business Lite' with most of the perks just without the flat bed.

Then you have airlines that will have an slightly better seat and meal, but really nothing that more than in Y.

If anything NZ/VS need to rename there product away from PE, as they are pretty much don't align with most other products. You have to look at the target market of those two airlines as well which is the Young Professionals. They want an plane that feels like an Night Club.

We're as SQ PE is more likely to attract an older more mature market for its PE.

Taobear

I have been flying PE three time till now to Europe. My opinion is also basically mixed. On one hand you pay at least double the Eco Fare but the benefits beside the Book the Cook and slightly better seat are marginal only. The only advantage I had recently was when I got a Exit Seat that I could sleep several hours without being interrupted. Best ever sleep I had exclude the Business Class Upgrade (with Miles) I got once. I think some more fine tuning for this product is required so that passengers are willing to pay the extra money for this. Especially now when book ahead a Biz Seat from HK to Europe cost just 30% more than PE.

Beolab

I fully agree. Air New Zealand is truly excellent in Premium Economy. When SIA announced their Premium Economy, I expected they would at least offer a similar or even better experience. But the current product and pricing is underwhelming.

LondonElite

I'm not sure what you mean by this. There are no defined terms for any class on an airplane. There is, for example, a huge variety in business class products among airlines. To me, most PE seats I've flown seem pretty much the same.

I think you are grossly over-exaggerating. In the UK, for example, many professional firms use VS PE for their executives. The same is true for BA, AC, etc. I don't understand your last sentence; who is the 'we'?

malmostoso

I've said this before, but on a Europe - NZ trip with back-to-back 12h flights PE is worth every penny of extra legroom and space.

Throw in that if you travel in a couple you don't have to share space with a stranger, you get full mileage, and you have increased luggage allowance, and I think a premium of 30% (which is what PE costs over flexi economy on the routes I generally use) is justified.

Yes, NZ's product is way better, but also more expensive.

djjaguar64

I find that all that is Premium in a Premium Economy is the Premium you pay to sit in that seat and that's about it!

pokfur

I quite agree with this post. Having flown P/E on SQ once I thought it was okay but definitely wouldn't pay so much for it. Even sale prices aren't competitive with other airlines.

It's easy to say that passengers shouldn't expect this or that, but this is SQ we are talking about and even in Economy, the expectation is already higher than the competition, let alone Premium Economy. And there is always a correlation between price and expectation.

I was thinking about which soft products could be improved and I thought that perhaps one of the easiest would be to serve passengers a 1-tray Business class meal similar to short-haul regional Business class flights. Since P/E exists only mainly on long-haul flights where J passengers already get elaborate meal services (tables are laid individually (no trays), and each course is brought out separately), P/E could then be the watered-down one-tray service that looks like a regional Business Class meal. A lot of things come down to presentation and as of now, the meal still looks more like an Economy class meal. It wouldn't hurt or cost much to plate the mains on a round plate, for example, instead of a rectangular bowl resembling an Economy main.

Also on a long-haul, most travelers value business class for its flat-bed seat, so I doubt that many J-flyers will be enticed to downgrade to a P/E seat, even if the food/service resembled a regional J service. On the other hand, those looking for an upgrade from Y will be wow-ed by the extra space and fantastic-looking meal.

Look at this for example:

Premium Economy meal SIN-LHR


Economy-looking main dish


Regional Business Class one-tray meal

Seriously all they gotta do is put the macaroni and cake into bowls (i mean even J I've also received macaroni starters and don't both cakes look rather interchangeable? ), plate the rice onto a circular plate, and tada! It'll look so much better. Not to mention actually pour the orange juice into the glass cup instead of putting it in a plastic cup then placing said plastic cup into glass cup... I also can't imagine it'll cost them that much more to provide the J napkins/utensils instead of the Y utensils and serviette... I mean, even BA gives napkins!!!

wyvern

I haven't booked SQ PE due to the issues Beolab identifies:

-Seat design features a footrest, which turns out to be useless for most
-No dedicated restrooms for the cabin section which other airlines do have
-No cabin separation from Economy Class. The curtains stay open
-No pre-takeoff drinks
-Meal quality only marginally better then Economy Class
-Book the Cook orders are served first, but no accompanying drinks service. This comes much later when the Book the Cook meal is already finished.
-No dedicated cabin crew for this cabin section, resulting in only one drink
service with the meal. Refill round too late or none at all.
-Champagne in all advertising, but only available on request
-Drinks served in plastic cups, not glassware
-Overpriced for what is offered. Often twice the price of Economy

To which I would add that the mileage uplift over economy fares is not adequate (10% additional miles on a economy fare earning 100%). Compare that with other carriers who offer a 25% or 50% uplift for PE.

When SQ introduced PE I was interested to see what it offered, but I think it is overpriced for what it is compared to the competition. The lack of a PE toilet and a curtain do make a difference - part of what you are paying for is a separate cabin - and pre-takeoff drinks and a better food and drink service are surely not too hard or costly to offer compared to the ticket price.

I don't see the point of fitting curtains if they are then left open. Did they think at one stage that they would be closed and then decided not to bother?

I fly SQ Y to Europe to Australia 4 or more times a year, normally on W H or E fares - if discount PE was not too much more (rather than twice the price) I might choose it - or if the service was much better and the product more differentiated from Y and the miles earning higher (on SQ and partners) I might be prepared to pay a fare closer to the current PE fares.

KACommuter

That's how BA's PEY was. About a third more floor space than economy with economy service from check-in onwards. It was priced at 1.8x but made the difference between a miserable long haul journey and an acceptable one.

The champagne and catering is not what makes some customers pay nearly double economy prices - it's the difference from pain reduction. And I used to pay this willingly on the SIN/LHR route.

However SQ's problem is their economy is already expensive, so doubling that prices their PEY product to within 15-20% of a one stop flatbed business product. So today I would pay for the one stop business flatbed. But this is probably not acceptable to those who "must travel SQ" hence the grousing...