Chessboxin

Interesting to see they were serving Kumeu River Maté's vineyard and the Felton Road Block 3... Wonder if that was just for the inaugural flight(s).

fbcooper

No I have not had the misfortune in flying in that seat haha. Never seen pop out screens on planes. I watched the youtube clip again and i can see what you are talking about. First time through i thought it was peoples own laptops/ipads they were watching. Don't know how i missed that.

Ok when he said no in between I understood it as no recline, just upright stiff sitting.

So definitely not as bad as I initially thought. My longest flight was jfk to guangzhou on china southern business which was 16.5 hours so 18 hours is definitely doable. Easily knocked out 12 hours of that flight just sleeping.

samjnz

The flipping over of the seat was somewhat innovative at the time of launch -- it means you're resting on a completely flat surface (since the pivot point of the seat is near the pillow) vs on other products at the time it felt uncomfortable where the seat back met the seat when fully reclined -- I remember this from when I was in BA Club World around 2003... it felt like a metal bar across my lower back

sbiddle

The fact you're so highly critical and judgemental of something you've never flown in says a lot. Despite the age of this seat design it still delivers one of the best sleeps of any lie flat seat in the sky, and that's the key thing most people want for a long duration night flight.

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LyingFlat

I must agree. The BP seat provides a level of sleep that is far superior than most other products I've flown. Whilst it's definitely overdue for a refresh, the only thing I hope they don't touch with the new seats in 2024 is the sleep quality.

I've had the privilege of flying many other airlines in F/J and Air NZ beats most. These are the only ones which have beaten NZ when it comes to sleep:

• LH 747-400 F (with the separate bed)
• SQ new 380 suite
• EH 380 apartment

Rebound

100% agree, the bed is the best sleep I've had in any J

fbcooper

Never said it didnt deliver one of the best sleeps but if i am paying that much in dollars or points for a product I can be critical and judgemental of it. Personally i have never had a problem falling asleep in any business seat, as long as i can sleep on my side i'm golden so I care more about being comfortable during my concious hours in my seat. Theres a reason they are revamping it in 2024. I have only been traveling in business class since 2018 so maybe I just got lucky with seats or airlines who revamped theirs earlier than air new zealand but seeing this video definitely did not leave a good impression especially if your unlucky to get the seats that face each other. Like I said in my previous post now that i know it does recline and the tv pops out I would probably still try it as it does save you at the very minimum 3 hours of travel time but I doubt anyone gets off the plane fully satisfied in terms of bang for their buck. At an average of $10k per round trip ticket this video will definitely make you think twice of ponying up that kind of money before checking your alternative choices.

sbiddle

Well the huge numbers of forward bookings on this route particularly in BP would suggest there are no shortage of people who don't agree with you.

What's interesting is that US passengers seem to really love the dine together option which is something most other airlines don't have. There are plenty of reasons why people will quite happily pay money to fly on Air NZ

jawnbc

I have to agree. Still haven't had anywhere near the same quality of sleep in other airlines's J (Austrian was a close second) hard product. Even with the coffin-like shoulder width, the mattress makes a massive difference.

JamesBigglesworth

No, it really doesn't. And there our opinions will simply fail to meet.

LyingFlat

How comfortable BP is to sleep in is of course a subjective thing. However, many people who I know who travel regularly on many different airlines find it superior to other airlines' F/J products when it comes to sleep comfort.

Off the top of my head, I've flown the following in the years leading up to Covid:

• EK F (both 'standard' and 'game changer')
• EY F & apartments
• SQ new and old 380 suites
• SQ new & old 777 F/J
• SQ longhaul J 350
• BA F/J
• LH F 380/747-8/747-400
• CX F/J
• UA J (Polaris)
• QF J
• MH F/J
• TG F
• NH J
• JL F/J
• VS J
• LX F
• TP J

I can hands down say that the sleep comfort in BP beats all of the above with the exception of LH F 747-400 (separate bed), new SQ 380 suites, and the EH 380 apartments.

Now, when it comes to general lounging, privacy, F&B, service etc, many of the above well and truly beat NZ BP. However, on an overnight flight where NZ is an option I will generally pick them over another "better" carrier.

Thai-Kiwi

At the and of the day ‘best for sleep’ is a subjective, personal assessment. I like the NZ seat for sleep, but I prefer other seats for day long haul. Then add in other factors such as service level and consistency, ff program, schedule ‘density’, competition, and price - and you have many dimensions for individual preference.

The fact people are prepared to pay (dearly IMHO) for AirNZ’s BP isn’t necessarily a reflection of a preference for the ‘sleep comfort’ of the BP seat. It might be, it might not. A comprehensive survey would be required of those that flew AirNZ BP, additionally it’d be interesting to also survey those that made other choices than AirNZ (for biz travel)..

Ellice

I’d be interested to know where the ‘best deep sleep’ claims are coming from. Are they just anecdotally?

samjnz

For me personally, I struggle with the length of the BP seat -- at 6'1" I do get a better sleep in Polaris since my feet don't touch the end of the seat (vs being squashed into the ottoman on NZ)

As i write this I see One Mile At A Time just came out with a review:
https://onemileatatime.com/insights/air-new-zealand-787-business-class/

sbiddle

Talk about a review full of negativity - with many of the negative points simply not being true.

Trouble getting out of the seat while the tray table is in use? I've never seen that before on any flight. You simply push the tray table forward and there is plenty of space.

No way to know that you'll have WiFi before a flight? Umm the plane is known at least 48-72 hours out at the latest and Wi-Fi will show in the app if available.

Every single one of us here knows the product is dated but if Lucky hates travel that much maybe he should find a different day job.

I did notice in the comments another person commenting on how great the news is for sleeping..