TrayflowInUK

Does anyone out there work for a company that pays for biz??? Somebody must because there seem to be a lot of fare-paying biz pax out there?

My company officially does but "strongly discourages" anyone from buying business class tickets to the point of preventing it.

My boss will generally let me go in biz if I can find a "Z" fare (heavily discounted) or upgrade with miles.

Doppy

IcelandAir has some pretty cramped seating. I wouldn't fly on them for free! Actually, I did, and would again!

But I don't think it's a good solution here.

Internaut

We were like this prior to complete prohibition on an "any flight over 8 hours" basis. In practice, getting anyone to sign off a business ticket was impossible.

Presently, anyone VP or above can fly business but this seems to be a US type status thing as senior management throughout much of the rest of the world voluntarily travels in Y.

talltravel

Thanks everyone for the input, I guess I started up the old debate of who should (who does) pay for J. I think for my personal situation, it's even stickier since the client eventually gets billed for my travel expenses. Right now I'm looking at WT+ or Premium Economy on Virgin, anyone know which one is better/worse? they seem to be competing products.

Right now it seems to make the most sense for London, but not sure if Virgin would server me well going to FRA, Zurich, or Geneva. I can't earn AA miles on BA when i'm crossing the pond right? So if I went the BA route I'd be better off signing up for thier program and starting fresh. The thing I like about Virgin is I could earn CO miles, but not sure if these are EQM or not....

Internaut

I'd say that BA's WT+ product is slightly better than Virgin's since you get the same type of seat regardless of the aircraft. With Virgin's product you always get a wider seat with more legreoom but on some aircraft (i.e. Airbus) you don't get a legrest (though I'm not sure how useful a small legrest would be to a really tall person).

Not sure what you mean by EQM on CO when flying Virgin but if you are referring to miles that count towards your status then probably not.

Fly AA J all the way

You can earn EQM on VS, but I believe only if it is a codeshare and you book through CO. You can do that, but the downside is that you cannot get Premium Economy, as CO does not recognize that class of service. I would vote for VS over BS simply because you are number two on the plane, instead of number three. That means, probably, slightly better service, but most of all, you will not have to wait as long to board or deplane (and with CO status, I believe you can board whenever you want). You will also have lounge access, if you are CO Plat. If you travel BA via Canada (or any other non-US country in North America) you can get AA credit. For exact details on all the EQM and benefits, I would post on the CO, VS, BA or AA boards.

sadiqhassan

Between the VS and BA (BS? Nice Name ) products. Since you are looking for comfort, BA is better IMHO. VS has a good product but it is better on ground (priority check-in) has nicer meals better service etc, whereas BA WT+ is a much better seat, but with the same economy service.

Cheers

v3

A lot of people do... If you look at it from the point of employee productivity and health, business class can be justified quit easily.

weblet

talltravel may also want to check company policy on economy class tickets. Some have advocated taking (for instance) a B cl AA ticket to minimize the miles needed to upgrade. talltravel's company may require him to take the least expensive fare available otherwise be in non-compliance with policy.

redbeard911

I have a bit of a pet peeve about this. When I was working in Asia, I followed the company's travel policy. THis was that you would purchase an upgradeable fare, and were given one paper SWU per trip.

I'm 6'3", and one of the corporate guys would fly out business class every time, allegedly because he was tall. (6'6") I asked where that was in the policy, and I outweighed him by 20 pounds, and had wider shoulders. On top of that, his $7K airfares were charged to my project.

I have flown LH E-- from FRA to DEN. It can be done. I don't think it can be argued that F or J is more comfortable for anyone, not just us People of Height.

I am not currently in a job with travel, (aside from weekly commutes) but if/when I change positions, I would almost make it a condition of employment that any flight over X hours. (probably 5-6+) would be paid biz. Every consultant that I have hired to send oversees requires it or they don't take the assignment. It's not unreasonable. I've done the overnight to Europe and been completely wiped out the next day trying to work.

outoftown

As RedBeard911 said, it would not be fair for an employer to upgrade anyone's travel arrangements due to physical size. What then, would all obese travelers demand to have 2 seats paid for, even if they are not flying SouthWest?

I'm only 6'3". I know the tricks. Best course of action is to upgrade using your miles or points. Find out which airlines/planes have a bigger pitch or sections with a bigger pitch. A UA agent may put you in the bigger pitch section regardless of status, if you just ask and there is seat availability. Reserve the exit row or bulkhead on airplanes with the exit door at the bulkhead. Travel on less full or less desirable flights to better your seat or upgrade choices. Have the gate agent block a coach seat next to you so you can do a diagonal while in flight. If all else fails, if you don't get the exit row, keep an eye on it for a no-show and change seats immediately prior to door closing. If that fails, ask a single traveler in the exit row to switch seats with you, explaining that you can't fit in a regular coach seat. Best to ask someone a lot smaller than you.

All else fails, avoid traveling if you can. Drive further for domestic travel. I have had several very large co-workers drive unbelievable distances to avoid the hassles of flying.