Thank you for your reply and for the link, Nic33. Very interesting comparison chart.
I have been flying from LHR to GIG in business for almost seven years but this time the budget is tight and I am obliged to downgrade. I need to go around May 19th/26th and fly back between June 05th/12th - there is no availability for upgrades or full redemption through my ffp during this period, or any other alternative dates that I checked. The few airlines that still fly to Rio are cutting frequencies so the fares have gone mad. I have checked fares ex-EU but they are not great either - by the time you add the positioning flights the fares become like-for-like so I am still better off leaving from LHR.
The idea of enduring what regular economy has turned into in the past years fills me with horror so I am looking for the best fares in "economy decent", the premium economy cabin. BA is charging £1,395 (£44 per way to select seats) which is a rip-off in my opinion (I read that the second meal service for this 11-hour flight is a wrap or a slice of pizza so for that price I will need to bring food with me). There is also a great chance of being met with their old WTP seat - I tried it on my way to Sao Paulo last year and thought it was dreadful. I would be very disappointed and upset if I ended up in a seat like that for £1,400.
I paid around £1,500 for a return ticket in business in July last year so the prices charged now are really crazy in my opinion.
Lufthansa's premium economy product looks attractive and the possibility of paying EUR25 for access to their Business lounge is a plus, but the average fare is still around £1,300 depending on dates. Regular economy with pre-assigned seats with extra legroom cost around £1,000...
Alitalia and Air France charge around the same or more and have those fixed-shell seats that slide forward but seem to remain upright, very uncomfortable based on the various reviews and trip reports I read.
Edelweiss Air is charging around £1,200 after assigning seats in the Economy Max cabin. The fare is not great but it's one of the lowest. Similar seats in Economy Comfort with KLM cost the same or a bit less, around £1,000 depending on dates. As per Edelweiss, the seat is the same as in regular economy but has a few more inches of legroom and recline.
These fares seem a bit too overpriced considering what one actually gets.
Thank you again for the link.