Originally Posted by
lhrsfo
All this talk of flying First Class is not really accurate. The US airlines sell "First" Class which is nothing of the sort. It's simply a larger seat and they sometimes (but not always) throw in a meal. The only US carrier still to offer true First Class (by which I mean a class above Business Class) is AA. The nearest thing to US "First" Class is marketed by most airlines as Premium Economy - a bigger seat and sometimes (but not always) better food. The premium for this service is generally 50-100%, reflecting the greater amount of space the seat takes. Business Class is generally a much larger and more private seat, which converts into a fully flat bed. The premium for this over PE is again about 100% or a bit more. And then there's true First Class, but if you have to ask the price, you can't afford it.
I think this is true of domestic first class. That is not an experience I would pay much of a premium for, because aside from a few service things and the ability to board first it is just a slightly larger seat. However, on internal flights the first class experience is wildly different than economy (although I'd argue that true first and business don't different enough to warrant the extra cost for first). Large lay flat seats, typically having direct aisle access, 70+ inches of pitch, wider seats, far more privacy is a completely different experience than economy.
Airlines now nickle and dime customers for so much these days, that I tend to add up all the adds on I typically need (or want) and then see what the difference is between economy and first. Sometimes once you've added up everything a ticket in first isn't that much more than the economy ticket, and so it's worth it, even for just a slightly larger seat.