Vangrovsky

Do United executives know that nobody like the angled Polaris business class seat?

On my last 4 12 to 14-hour long haul flights on 777-300ER and 777-200, all the remaining seats on day of departure were angled seats.

My next flight coming up this week, there are 24 unassigned seats on the seat map. Again. all 24 are angled seats.(either next to the window or in the middle)

I don't think I've met anybody who deliberated picked an angled seat. They kind of just "settle" for those seats because, well, they are still way better than cramped E+ seats...

Kind of reminds me of my very first job many, many years ago, at a Mercedes dealership. I was still in college and worked as one of the assistants for the sales manager. We always had a couple dozen dark green Mercedes E-class(sedans and wagons). Nobody every bought them on purpose. The manager told me that he had never heard a customer asking for them in that awful green color. The dealership was either required to accept them or they came in as part of a trade with another dealership. In the end, they did sell the green Mercedes by offering bigger than usual discounts or free $800 CD changers(yes, they were that expensive back then), frequently to first-time Mercedes buyers. They had so many green ones, even us lowly assistants sometimes get to drive them to run errands and sometimes even to drive home on the weekends. I drove one back to school once and my friends said "ewwww.... why is your Mercedes in that god awful green color?" I never forgot that remark...

It was this green: https://www.benzworld.org/attachment...pm-jpg.159270/

lhrsfo

Interesting analogy, but the situation isn't analogous. Mercedes could simply have found a more attractive paint color and used that at no extra cost. For UA, the airline heard loud and clear that most customers wanted lie-flat and direct aisle access above anything else. The configuration they came up with provides that whilst using less space than (I believe) any other airline. The cost of having just straight seats is either losing all aisle access, or using significantly more space in the plane. So it was a compromise, but to do otherwise would have cost a lot extra for relatively little benefit.

paperwastage

Pick your poison

High density (good for upgrades!!), All aisle acess, private space

Versus lower density (fewer upgrades), no all aisle (or all aisle with more space, but higher ticket price to make up for it)

All United can do is pull a LH (start charging for more desirable/throne seats). UA already started doing it in economy (preferred seats for corporate/elites)

LondonElite

I personally own a dark green Mercedes and love the colour, so I'm a little offended.

The reason for the angle is that, otherwise UA would not have been able to fit as many seats in. Yes, we all prefer the odd seats, but I don't think the others are as bad as you make out. My bigger problem with the seat design is the narrow footwell and the slider button on the side, which I activate all the time when I turn in my sleep.

rch4u

United does not have angled lie-flat seats on any of its aircraft. They are all 180 degrees, fully flat beds, including on the 773s and 772s.

WindowSeatFlyer

The OP is obviously talking about seats that are not aligned straight forward.

vaguba

They are talking about the ones in even rows that angle outward

drewguy

United probably knows this, but what are they going to do? People still pay for them.

If I were paying for a J ticket I'd still pay for the J ticket even if all that was left were seats in even rows. Yes, the odd rows are a slightly nicer seat, but it's not a huge deal. It's like not being able to get an aisle in the front of E+. You grab something decent elsewhere and move on.

Often1

Why do you say "nobody?"

If UA reworked the cabin layout as you suggest, there would be fewer seats and would either need to cost a good deal more or perhaps make the flight unprofitable.

So, here is the question for you: If UA offered a J cabin with no angled seats, but it cost 15% more, would you pay that much? How about 20%?

The analogy does not work because analogies never do.

LondonElite

I suppose what they could have done is set them up so the angled ones face the window rather than the aisle, meaning the odd-numbered seats would be closer to the aisle with the ledge by the window...

Fraser

I like it! It's a classic Benz colour of the 1990s.

Not sure I'd buy it though, same with Polaris

findark

Pretty sure most people still prefer it to the Diamond (pmCO J) seat

LondonElite

That's not the dark colour though...

rankourabu

Lets go back to 2-4-2 layout! That was amazing

Said noone ever.

ryman554

Won't work. Try diagramming it out -- you can't get the all-aisle access that way without giving up seat density.