rxalexa

On a transatlantic flight, do you prefer a widebody or a narrowbody? I would like to hear comments on both coach and business class.

Duke787

Widebody for both.

In economy the width of the plane makes it feel more open and tolerable for the TATL. Plus the vast majority of TATL widebody flights (at least on US carriers and on DL which is my main carrier) are on 767s or A330s which have a 2-3-2 setup which is my preferred coach option. If traveling with a +1 you have the whole row to yourself and even if flying alone it's easier to manage than the 3-3 you get on the 757/A321 narrowbody TATLs.

In J it's due to the fact that widebody planes are far more likely to have all aisle access plus the seat itself can be bigger than on a narrowbody. Even if it's not all aisle access, you can usually snag a middle section seat and be guaranteed aisle access on a 2-2-2 J set-up. On the flip side most narrowbody TATLs are setup in 2-2 in J which means you have to step over someone to get up, which I'm not a fan of in general (and even more so if traveling alone)

writerguyfl

As long as I have an aisle seat, I don't care about the width of the plane.

aroundtheworld76

Same. I like the fact that the 2-3-2 config means there's only one middle seat, but If I have a decent shot at scoring an aisle seat, the width of the plane makes no difference as far as comfort in Y. Narrowbody TATL flights make nonstop service more viable from smaller gateways, so it can mean a nonstop rather than a connection. I also like the smaller number of people on a narrowbody during the deplaning process and when queuing at passport control.

lhrsfo

As a window person as long as a) there is only one person to climb over rather than two and b) I'm not on an airline which demands total darkness for the entire flight, I really don't care.

Having said that, if I do find a 330 or 767, I prefer them. Both BA and UA generally operate planes with three seats by the window which is a pain except for the greater likelihood of the middle seat being unoccupied.

Splendiz

In Business Class I don't care at all about the with of the plane as there is usually aisle access everywhere or one person to climb over at max. In Economy I prefer narrower airplanes if that means that it is more a 2-3-2 than a 3-3-3 or 3-4-3 or whatnot. Too many rows in Economy mean higher chance of getting stuck somewhere in the middle. ;-)

garykung

I prefer no one sitting next to me. Other than that, I don't really care.

Splendiz

Haha true. That's the best case. Unless if I'm travelling with my fiance. ;-)

P__Squared

I don't care about narrowbody vs widebody but I vastly prefer 2-3-2 and 2-4-2 seating over 3-3 in Y. If it's something like a 777 with 3-3-3 or 3-4-3 seating then I don't think it's any better than a narrowbody plane except that the ratio of overhead bins to passengers is a bit better.

If we're talking J then I prefer whatever plane has open award seats

Track

BA's all-business class A318 LCY-JFK is very nice.

fransknorge

I have done narrowbody twice (BA1 A318 All J and 757) for TATL. I prefer widebody: more sense of space, less confined, ratio toilet/passenger much better. I comtemplated doing LIS-YUL in A321 and finally decided for YYZ in A330, simply because of the airplane.

Zeeb

In business if it is a 1-1 setup up front for narrowbody or 1-2-1 setup for widebody I don't care much but slightly default to widebody just because I like having 2 aisles in case one is blocked and to make it easier to get up and walk around without being in anyone's way. For coach I definitely prefer widebody. First because a lot of airlines have the 2-3-2 or 2-4-2 setup and I greatly prefer being able to get a seat with only one other person next to me vs the 3-3 setup of a narrowbody. Second because being able to get up and walk around is nice in business but essential in Y.

pinniped

Narrowbody, preferably on Spirit with a middle seat. (OK, so they don't do TATL, but they fly to Lima which is almost the same.)

I can't believe this is a serious question...outside of *maybe* an all-J config with a private-jet vibe to it, does anybody *want* a narrowbody across the Atlantic? I'll tolerate them and won't necessarily try to reroute myself around them, but I don't *like* them.

767 is my favorite plane for this type of route, both in J and Y. I was looking forward to the 797, which was to be roughly the same size, but it looks like that plane is in serious doubt.