Originally Posted by
brendog
While I don't fly internationally nearly as often as I used to (1x or 2x a month from EWR-MAN for 2+ years), I don't think J or F is really justifiable, unless a solid corporate contract with deep discounts is in place. While F or J is obviously a much better experience, I don't find myself appreciably more rested than after a flight in Y. YMMV, of course.
This is my experience as well. Flying 15 hours is tough no matter how wide the seat is. Since neither J nor Y will let you lie down and sleep as if you were in bed, and since International coach is "usually" better than your typical MD80 coach, I would at least give Y a try for a few times, especially if I'm being judged on profitability.
Also I would try for as few trips as possible (sacrilege on FT, I know). But I think it's ridiculous to fly 15 hours each way to be at a client site for only 2 or 3 days. That kind of travel burden tells me you should be on site for at least a solid week, preferably 2 weeks.