#ThrowBackThursday: The Airline That Invented Business Class
Carly Zinderman May 03, 2018
Once upon a time, airlines offered only first class and economy class. Now, a true first class is becoming increasingly rare as airlines offer mainly business class and economy class with a few beginning to offer their version of premium economy. AirlineGeeks reveals the first airline to offer business class and how the innovation has continued into the modern age of air travel.
British Caledonian, a now unknown and defunct airline originally introduced business class in 1978. Originally founded in 1970 as Caledonian Airways, the airline became British Caledonian after British United Airways took it over later in the year. After weathering the 1973 oil crisis, British Caledonian was facing increased competition over U.S. to UK routes. As an effort to do better than breaking even with price drops and off-season capacity issues, British Caledonian created the Executive Cabin, which would become business class.
A popular flight publication announced that a 707 now had three-class service on select flights: “24 first class seats, an Executive Cabin with 54 seats and 48 Thrift Class seats.” Later, the airline would also offer the class on other travel routes and promote the features, which included: “separate check-in counters, more leg room in the cabin and a greater variety of food and drinks during your flight.”
Other airlines picked up on the advantages of offering business class, beginning with Air France, followed by Pan Am and others.
British Caledonian would eventually falter due to terrorist attacks in Germany and the Chernobyl disaster making transatlantic flights less popular and political turmoil in Nigeria had similar effects on UK to Africa routes. The airline never recovered from the worldwide issues of 1986 and would eventually be swallowed by British Airways in 1988. While the airline is no longer in existence, business class remains a popular option for many travelers.
[Image: Wikimedia Commons]
Carly, You got the take-over the wrong way round. Caledonian actual took over British United Airways
Flew on British Caledonian in the mid 1980s. The flight crew in their tartan uniforms! A couple of times a week it flew planes that were half passenger/half cargo on the LGW-HKG route. The cargo would mostly be goods for the British Army in Hong Kong. Not weapons AFAIK, but the odd jeep might be on the plane. This meant that there was no weight limit for luggage, just size limits, which meant two suitcases as heavy as you could carry (wheeled luggage wasn't so common then). Don't recall whether there was a business section, but half the plane was blocked off for the cargo and there was a smoking section in the middle part, so perhaps not enough room on that configuration.
THE ABOVE COMMENT IS IN THE WRONG ARTICLE! It belongs in the hotel article about wall dispensers replacing bottled shampoos: https://www.flyertalk.com/articles/major-hotels-are-axing-beloved-amenity.html not to this article about who invented business class.
I’ve happily used wall dispensers in boutique hotels in Germany. It was part of the charm. In Hawaii, one hotel they went from a lovely local organic poo/cond dispensers to mini bottles, claiming the product ‘went off’, and that much was wasted. 🤔 Then I stayed at The Davenport in Spokane, And was elated to use L’Occitane from wall dispensers! Lovely! It’s all in the maintenance and dispensing!