goldencondor

I've been doing some research into airlines that offer business/first class services above and beyond the norm that you usually get on flights within Europe.

For example, BA's Club Europe service is no great shakes when you compare it to, say, LAN's business offering if you're flying from Madrid to Frankfurt. The LAN plane (a 787) departs from South America, so it's equipped with a long haul business class service. When it arrives at Madrid it then flies onwards to Frankfurt, and you can book the business class seats.

I've been trying to work out a list of the routes within Europe that offers business class like this, and that you can book just on those segments. I'm only including flights that regularly schedule planes offering this service. Can you add any to the routes below that I've missed out? This is only Europe I'm looking at, remember.

Between:

Madrid and Frankfurt (LAN)
Madrid and Heathrow (Iberia, their A330 plane only)
Helsinki and Heathrow (Finnair)
Munich and Manchester (Singapore Airlines)
Istanbul and Heathrow (Turkish Airlines)
Amsterdam and Gatwick (Garuda Indonesia)
Malta and Larnaca (Emirates)
Athens and Larnaca (Emirates)
Baku and Tbilisi (Qatar Airways)
Barcelona and Vienna (Air China)
Athens and Munich (Air China)
Stockholm and Vienna (Ethiopian)
Vienna and Zurich (Korean Air)
Frankfurt and Geneva (Kuwait Airways)
Paris and Rome (Kuwait Airways)

Munch and Catania with Air Malta isn't bookable in business.

The below flights exist but aren't bookable at all on those segments:

Belgrade and Sofia (Qatar Airways)
Brussels and Paris CDG (Ethiopian Airlines)
Stockholm and Rome (Ethiopian)
Copenhagen and Oslo (Pakistan Airlines)
Berlin Tegel and Paris CDG (Pakistan Airlines)

Adam1222

Ethiopian has a few, including Stockholm-Vienna.
Kuwait has a few
Korean does Vienna-Zurich
Swiss has been known to use 777-300ERs within Europe.

Air Malta does not have any long haul planes, nor does it have business. So it shouldn't be on your list.

goldencondor

Duly noted - thanks!

Do you know what business class is like on Ethiopian/Kuwait/Korean? Is it up to the standard of the others listed, or more akin to CE?

sdsearch

But are all of these bookable by themselves? I know there are other places in the world where an airline from outside the country or region offers connecting flights after longhaul service using the same plane, where the connecting flight is not bookable on its own, only in conjunction with that longhaul flight.

There used to be someone who offered a connecting flight LHR-BRU (London Heathrow - Brussels) in this manner, but I don't remember who offhand nor do I know whether it still exists.

Adam1222

There are tons of trip reports about Ethiopian and Korean on the internet.
The airlines you listed vary greatly amongst each other and based on what specific aircraft is used.
Ethiopian and Korean both offer fine business products. For Ethiopian, depends on what plane.

I believe most if not all of these are bookable on their own as fifth freedom flights.

NewbieRunner

Swiss has not been known to use 777-300ERs within Europe because the first aircraft of this type has not been delivered yet. They will, however, be using 777-300ERs for intra-European training flights during February and March 2016.

United? I believe they used to fly LHR-BRU as a tag-on in order to keep a slot at LHR.

goldencondor

These are all bookable in both economy and business. None of these services offer First Class.


Bookable in economy and business, but not First - not online anyway. I think they do have First on the planes, but I don't know how you book it, or even if you aren't permitted to book it for a short haul leg.


Bookable in Economy, Business and First.


Not bookable in any class so I assume you can't do so, despite Qatar's route map showing the flight connecting in Sofia.



Thanks!

goldencondor

Emirates have a new Fifth Freedom flight from Athens to Larnaca that might be worth a look.

goldencondor

Can add a new one to this list. Finnair's service from Helsinki to London at 8am uses an A340 which has a separate business class section. Looks like a long haul style service. Journey time is 3 hrs 10 minutes. 15k avios plus £43 tax on BA.com. Full price on BA is 500 quid!

Yoshi212

TK has a bunch of intraEurope on their A330s and I think 777s too to a few destinations. CDG, LHR, AMS, FRA (sometimes) and a few others.

JDiver

Iberia operates their A319 set up for mid-long haul flights such as MAD-TLV on some intraeuropean flights as well. I've flown it between LIS and MAD, and would compare it to older business class products with 50" pitch, good recline and leg / foot rests, 2 X 2 configuration. The class is called "Business Club".

Far better than most "Business" products flown by European airlines on intraeuropean flights with 3 X 3 across and 30-31" pitch.

http://www.seatguru.com/airlines/Ibe...us_A319_V2.php on SeatGuru.

goldencondor

Thanks. The seating does look better than CE!

sdsearch

Really "most"?

BA flies 2.5 + 2.5 across (ie, middle seats "shrunk" into non-use) and at least about 34" pitch in Club Europe. Are they really the only one besides co-owned Iberia??? (Gosh, even the first row or two of 3 + 3 Y behind Club Europe tends to have 34" or so pitch. That's typically where I get seated if I'm in Y on a BA connecting flight booked through AA where I'm OW Sapphire via LT Plat.)

I flew in LH business and SAS business intra-Europe last summer, and I don't remember the pitch being as bad as 31"; it was somehow a bit better than standard Y, but I don't remember how much better. I don't remember if both were 3 + 3 or only SAS.)

LondonElite

Back in the good old days, but no longer...the new BA CE seats have ca 30" pitch (row 1 a bit more). In fact the whole plane is that tight.

BreezeMC

BA CE Frankfurt to Heathrow operate an older Yin-Yang on BA0903 on the 10:55am.