For a few years now, there’s been abundant competition for business-class travelers on the trans-Atlantic route, with upstarts carving out all-business class niches to woo passengers away from the major airlines. But until now, there’s been no such movement on the trans-Pacific routes.

But it’s no upstart that’s offering this new service. It’s Singapore Airlines.

They’re converting their ultra-long-haul Airbus 340-500’s to all-business configurations, which means that “Executive Economy” customers are getting the boot. These widebody planes will go from 181 passengers to 100.

Others have already chimed in on the issue. Jared Blank thinks this will be a cash cow. The Cranky Flier is skeptical, calling it a “no-win,” and throwing some barbs at the aircraft for good measure.

Is this a great business move? I don’t know. But my thoughts are this: The supply of business class seats on Singapore Airlines — a truly top-notch airline — just went up big-time. Maybe, just maybe, the frequent flyer seat inventory went up, too. This could be a great opportunity to cash in frequent flyer miles and really get some bang for your proverbial buck.

After all, Newark to Singapore is 9535 nonstop miles, according to the excellent Great Circle Mapper. If ever there’s a flight where you really want to be in business class, it’s this one.

Downgraded: The mile-high club
Singapore Airlines has some of the swankest first class seats — ahem, “suites” — in the sky, but if you want to get frisky with your mate at 39,000 feet, no dice. Despite having a double bed in their suites, the airline enforces a no-sex policy in the sky. Note the key word: enforces. Early passengers on the A380 weren’t pleased:

“So they’ll sell you a double bed, and give you privacy and endless champagne — and then say you can’t do what comes naturally?” asked Tony Elwood, a vigorous 76. “Seems a bit strange.”

Sorry, Tony. Your ticket may say first class, but you and the missus will have to use the lavatory, just like everyone else. Or rent a private love jet for $299.

Downgraded: Airbus’ green claims
One big selling point for modern aircraft is always their lower fuel consumption. Leo Hickman at the Guardian ran the numbers on the A380, and found that Airbus’ calculations are bogus. They assume a full plane of 555 passengers, but zero luggage or cargo, when they calculate the kerosene burn. How realistic. (By the way, Airbus claims that the A380 will burn 2.9 liters of fuel per passenger for every 100km traveled, i.e., 75 grams of carbon dioxide per passenger per km.)

Upgraded: Olde tyme hotel rates
The Palmer House in Chicago is allowing repeat guests to stay there at the rate they paid years ago. A great deal… as long as the earlier stay was fifty years ago or more, and if the guests still have the original receipt. A 1947 receipt will get you a room under $10. Which wasn’t cheap! (Notice to my wife: THIS is why I keep receipts.)

Downgraded: The State Department
Turns out that the $97 passport fee is nicely padded in the government’s favor, far above the cost of processing. Gosh, really?

Downgraded: Surcharges
The seven most annoying travel surcharges, from Chris Elliott. Room service “Tray fee”?? Wow, that’s really brazen.

Downgraded: The TSA
TSA regularly sends staff to conduct internal testing of its security procedures. But it turns out they’re sometimes tipping off the front-line staff in advance. (I know someone who works for TSA, who has had the pleasure of carrying a “bomb” through the airport. Yes, they caught him. Who’da thunk.)

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Great, right? Well… there’s a catch. Skype is on the list of planned features. Hell is your seatmate shouting, “Guess where I am! No, guess! I’m on a plane!” Screaming madmen yelling at jilted lovers in faraway places could soon be sitting right next to you, laptops open, vocal cords ablaze. Bring the earplugs!

Upgraded: Singapore Airlines reveals its surprisingly spacious A380 layout
The Airbus A380, when packed to the gills with nothing but economy seats, could carry as many as 853 people. The normal three-class provision is estimated at 555 seats. But Singapore’s layout will only feature 471 seats, thanks largely to a boatload of extra-wide business class seats, much like the ones pictured here. To get a glimpse of the seatmap, Click here. Note that the economy class seats on the lower level are configured 3-4-3 and the upper level has them at 2-4-2.

Upgraded: The UK’s Travelodge
Downgraded: Home
An elderly British couple has been living in a Travelodge motel room for over twenty years. Talk about extended stay! Travelodge in the UK is not the same company as in the US. I’ve never stayed in the UK variant, but for their sake, I hope it’s better than the stateside chain. (via BoingBoing)

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Whom or what would they kill to get an upgrade?
Nepal Airlines mechanics sacrificed two goats to appease Akash Bhairab, the Hindu sky god, after they just couldn’t quite fix the problems in their Boeing 757. How many goats does it take to get a 757 to arrive on time at LAX? Slaughtering livestock isn’t limited to Himalayan aviation: Longtime readers may recall that Turkish Airlines maintenance workers killed a camel to celebrate the disposal of a regional jet last year.

$100K isn’t a good flight value
I know it was for charity. But paying $100,000 to fly on the inaugural Airbus A380 flight on Singapore Airlines seems a bit much. Most importantly, will they earn miles?

Shocker: Motel 6 really won’t leave the light on for you
To conserve energy, the ultra-budget chain doesn’t really leave lights on. So says their folksy pitchman Tom Bodett. So you know it’s true.

Delta’s apparently not afraid of the competition
Inside baseball, maybe, but still: Looking over the blogroll at Delta’s blog, I noticed that they link to their competitors: Southwest’s blog. That’s pretty gutsy for a corporate blog!

United names dates and planes for new business class rollout
The first plane to receive the long-awaited upgrade of 180-degree lie-flat seats in the business class cabin: a Boeing 767. It’s scheduled to travel between Washington and Frankfurt on October 29, 2007. Saver awards are unavailable at press time.

US Air Force tags nuclear warheads to wrong airport
Next time your luggage heads to Ketchikan, Alaska instead of Kansas City, take heart: The Air Force does it too. A B-52 bomber mistakenly carried six nuclear warheads from Minot, North Dakota to Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana. Oops. Just better hope it doesn’t end up at the Unclaimed Baggage Center.

Courts: Entering an airport means you’re subject to searches
This is old news, but I admit I just got wind of it now. If you’re at an airport in the U.S., you can’t turn around and leave the premises if you want to avoid being searched. “Citing threats of terrorism, the court ruled passengers give up all rights to be free of warrantless searches once a ‘passenger places hand luggage on a conveyor belt for inspection’ or ‘passes though a magnetometer.’ [...] In 1973, the circuit court ruled that airport searches were valid ‘only if they recognize the right of a person to avoid search by electing not to board the aircraft.’” Not anymore. Offer to leave all you want, they can still search you. For the law-dogs out there, the case is United States v. Aukai, 04-10226. (via Wired’s Threat Level)

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eBay auction: Fly the A380 in its commercial debut
If you want to fly on the A380’s maiden commercial voyage with Singapore Airlines, and not just admire Lego miniature models (above), then eBay might have your ticket. Coming soon, a charity auction of tickets on the inaugural flight, with proceeds going to Community Chest of Singapore and Doctors Without Borders. When can you start bidding? That depends on Airbus: “The auction will take place a few weeks before the flight. SIA said that it would announce the launch date once it had a delivery date from Airbus for the plane.”

Westjet: No paper required
Canadian airline Westjet is eliminating the need for printouts of e-tickets. A copy of your ticket on your laptop or smartphone will do the trick. Might not work on US-Canada flights — the ID checker at American airports would likely still try to scrawl their initials on your LCD screen. (via TheAirlineHub)

Drunken pilots? So 1990s. But drunken astronauts?
“At least twice, astronauts were allowed to fly after flight surgeons and other astronauts warned they were so drunk they posed a flight-safety risk.” Be glad Virgin Galactic hasn’t launched.

Eos opens new lounge at Stansted
All-business Eos Airlines escalates the trans-Atlantic wars with a new lounge at London-Stansted.

Qantas introduces premium economy
Wider seats (19.5″), more legroom, legrests, better menu, laptop power, noise-canceling headsets, and a separate check-in line. If flying to Australia, and if you feel like paying about twice the price of coach (but half the price of business), then Qantas premium economy may be the ticket. Coming February 2008 on their Airbus A380s and Boeing 747s.

Time-waster: Statris!
Test your USA geography and your motor reflexes with Tetris-esque geo-fun! (via BoingBoing)

Arthur G. writes in:

The Airbus 380 looks amazing. How much will tickets cost?

This is actually quite a common question received here at Upgrade: Travel Better HQ. People are clearly awed by the size of the A380 — I was awed, too, when I saw it back in March. Others are wary of getting on a plane that big, especially in case of an emergency. (See the evacuation test video for a best-case scenario.)

But your question about prices can’t be answered, Arthur. While an airline’s equipment certainly affects its cost structure (and the A380 isn’t cost-effective on every route), the price of a plane ticket isn’t solely linked to the model of aircraft.

You probably wouldn’t ask, “How much will a flight on Boeing 737 cost?” After all, you can fly a Boeing 737 on Aloha Airlines from Honolulu to Kona, or on Continental from San Francisco to Newark, or even from Houston to Zurich in an all-business class configuration on Privatair. The price could be anywhere from $39 to $8000. The model of plane isn’t determining the fare.

So if you want to fly on the Airbus A380, your fare will depend on the route, the airline, the class of service, how far in advance you buy the ticket… not to mention that old standby, supply and demand. Just like every other flight.

Singapore Airlines will receive the first four A380s to roll off the assembly line, with expected delivery date in the fall of this year. The initial route will be London-Singapore-Sydney. Qantas will bring the behemoth to American shores on flights to Australia in 2008. Lufthansa will bring the ‘bus to New York thereafter, if all goes according to plan.

But the price of those flights? That depends.

Related:
- Airbus A380 at Chicago O’Hare
- Video: Airbus A380 evacuation test

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Group hug: Mergers and partnerships
JetBlue merging with Delta? Rumored, but unlikely. Brazil’s TAM and Germany’s Lufthansa? Not a merger, but a codesharing partnership. United is getting in on the hot codesharing action with TAM, too. Lufthansa also joined up with El Salvador’s TACA, already a United partner. Are the Star Alliance invitations far off? And keepin’ it Star, is Singapore Airlines buying China Eastern? They’re buying a piece, but how big will that piece be?…

Can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em?
British Airways, apparently in a response to the all-business class service from startups like Eos, Silverjet, and Maxjet, is considering rolling out all-premium service between unnamed European and American cities. Premium economy in the back, business in the front. No straight-up economy, and no first. (Thanks, Benet!)

Countdown to 7/8/07
Boeing has started assembling its first 787 Dreamliner, a plane manufactured in prefab pieces around the world and bolted together at the Everett factory. The debut is scheduled for July 8. 7/8/07… 787… har har har.

American updates website, makes it more like Southwest
American Airlines revamped their website, giving you an overview of the different fares you can book. The layout will be familiar, if you’ve ever booked on Southwest. Or Air Canada. Or Qantas. Or Ted. (Does anyone ever actually book tickets at the Ted site?)

Yapta comes alive!
Yapta, the service that tracks fares after you’ve bought, mentioned here last week, is now live.

Alaska Airlines downgrades their upgrades
If you used miles to upgrade flights on Alaska Airlines, you’ll have to buy far more expensive tickets in order to do so. Thumbs down. Gary Leff has the full scoop.

Upgraded: American Airlines’ fleet
American is boosting its delivery schedule of Boeing 737-800s, to replace the aging, gas-guzzling McDonnell Douglas MD-80s that make up half their fleet. The new planes will burn 25% less fuel.

Downgraded: Cash on Frontier Airlines
Frontier will no longer accept cash for onboard payments, beginning April 1. They join other airlines like ATA and Spirit in going cashless. Cash may be downgraded, but overall, and many will miss the choice of cash or plastic, but as an aficionado of credit cards (more miles! receipts!) this is fine with me.

Upgraded: European airline merger fever!
The open skies treaty’s passage on the European side of the Atlantic is sparking chatter of mergers and acquisitions. British Airways has expressed interest in bmi, Lufthansa is peeking around Iberia, bmi, and Alitalia, and Virgin Atlantic has supposedly been poking around the continent’s airlines as well. No trans-Atlantic mergers rumored quite yet.

Upgraded: Lufthansa lounges
Lufthansa is spending $130 million worldwide to upgrade its airport lounges, which are already pretty decent. U.S. airlines’ lounges, already a sad also-ran in the global lounge wars, will seem even more outdated and under-serviced.

Downgraded: Singapore Airlines’ frequent flyer program
It’s not just U.S.-based carriers who seem hell-bent on reducing benefits for their frequent flyers. The Global Traveller bemoans the latest changes in Singapore Airlines’ KrisFlyer program.

Upgraded: Luxury hotel brands’ geographic reach
Looking for a Ritz-Carlton or other high-end hotel? It’s getting easier. The luxe chains are spreading to second- and third-tier cities.

Upgraded: Regulation
Travel companies, from cruise ships to airlines, haven’t done a sufficiently good job of self-regulating, so here come the regulators! Beyond the PBOR, we’re seeing moves toward regulating the cruise industry as well as airlines. The pressure to re-regulate is snowballing.

Upgraded: Your stinky wardrobe
Brilliant! A charcoal garment bag that deodorizes your stinky clothes. (Via Dethroner)

Upgraded: Airport bathrooms
Coming soon to Raleigh-Durham Airport: Better bathrooms! Wider/longer stalls let you keep your stuff in sight. But this has me scratching my head: “Tilted mirrors will be placed above the urinals so men can keep an eye on computer cases even as they’re going about their business.” Won’t these mirrors provide others with a great show, too? I’ll settle for cleaner bathrooms, as a start.

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Miles Part 2: Delta limits your routings for frequent flyer mile redemptions
When you’re trying to get from point A to point B, nonstop flights are usually the preference. But if you’re cashing in miles to travel halfway ’round the world, it’s sometimes nice to break up the trip a little, even if only for one night, to spend a little time in a city along the way. (On international routings, many programs allow you to break up the trip without penalty if there are less than 24 hours layover.) Delta is making such itineraries harder to create. Domestic itineraries will be limited to two stops each way, and international itineraries max out at three stops. If you’re not flying from a major hub, this might affect you more than you think. Gary Leff has the lowdown.

Miles Part 3: US Airways ending partnership with Qantas
Frankly, I’m amazed this hasn’t ended earlier, since US Airways is in Star Alliance and Qantas is in oneworld. As USA Today’s Ben Mutzabaugh reports, you’ll have until February 28 to earn US Airways miles on Qantas. February 28 is also your deadline for booking Qantas award tickets with US miles, though your deadline for flying on that ticket is January 31, 2008.

Free gold status with Hilton?
Not sure if this will work, but Gary Leff (again!) offers a possible way to get Hilton Gold for free. Use this link and enter code EMOD.

Free dream vacation?
CondeNast Traveler’s Wendy Perrin invites you to submit a description of your dream vacation. The winner gets what they ask for. Be creative!

January 18 is William Shatner Travel Blog Appreciation Day
Not sure why, but two — count ‘em, two! — separate blogs written by journalists draw lessons on the travel world by reference to William Shatner. Coincidence, or providence? Benet Wilson invokes the prime-time Shatner in discussing the TSA, while Chris Elliott salutes “The Shat” and his Priceline-hawking skill. I have no relevant Shatner link-ups to make, so I’ll just slap up an image of his amazing 1968 album, The Transformed Man. Update: Shatner’s album has been remastered and re-released! Wow. His renditions of “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds” and “Mr. Tambourine Man” are legendary. Here’s the reprint at Amazon.com. (aff. link)

Chicago area to Phoenix area for $1
New discount airline SkyValue is offering $1 tickets from Chicago-Gary Airport (in Gary, Indiana) to Mesa Williams Gateway Airport (outside of Phoenix). Kickin’ it Ryanair style! Alas, the $1 flights are only available on January 24, but return flights are only $79 plus taxes. And the taxes are low, since neither airport seems to charge a passenger service fee. I found (but didn’t buy) long-weekend roundtrip tickets for $91.80 per person, all-in. SkyValue flies Boeing 737-800 jets. Their website is jaw-droppingly horrendous, like it was designed by a teenager in 1996. (via CheapFlights)

FedEx installs first anti-missile system on a commercial jet
We may not be safe from missile attacks in the air, but our overnight deliveries are. The first anti-missile system on a plane was just installed.

“Singapore Girls”: A sexist stereotype or a national treasure?
Regardless of your stand, Singapore Airlines’ flight attendants may be undergoing a makeover.

If you thought hotel pay-per-view was racy now…
…Just wait until they start offering live-action pay-per-view. It’s coming.

Passengers miss flight because a Northwest crew wanted donuts
Since when do pilots call the shots on the ground, too? A flight crew convinced a hotel shuttle bus driver to go for donuts instead of heading to the airport, causing other van riders to miss their flight. Full story via Chris Elliott.

Wisconsin Dells loses its Wonder Spot
Ah, the Dells… The klassic kitschy Chicagoland weekend getaway. It has now lost one of its treasures, the gravity-defying Wonder Spot. While Tommy Bartlett’s Thrill Show remains, the Wonder Spot will be missed.

My bag is happy to see you
A “vibrating bag” was discovered unattended at Chicago O’Hare. (It contained a sleep apnea machine, so wipe that smirk off your face!)

I came for the transportation, I stayed for the haircut
Virgin Atlantic hires more in-flight beauty therapists.

Love at first sting
Two separate flights, two separate incidents of scorpions stinging people on a plane. Flight one: Chicago to Burlington, Vermont. Flight two, Miami to Toronto. Forget Samuel L. Jackson. Bring me Klaus Meine!

Singapore Airlines’ new business class… reviewed!
Remember Singapore Airlines’ major upgrade to its business and first class cabins on selected routes? The Global Traveller has sat in the business class seat, and offers his review. Live vicariously.

Charlie Trotter and United Airlines reunited and it feels so good
This is where the cost savings from eliminating pretzels in coach must have gone. United Airlines is jazzing up the food in business and first class. They’re bringing back uber-chef Charlie Trotter, whom they ditched after 9/11. Bet you a bag of savory snack mix that it’ll still taste like airline food… (Thanks to Mark L.!)

Oasis coming to Oakland
Oasis, the Hong Kong based discount airline, famous for it’s $128 tickets to London, is coming to the United States. They’ll start flights from Hong Kong to Oakland in June, with 4x weekly service to start, moving up to daily service in August. No word yet on the fare.

Avoid the TSA by shipping yourself in a crate?
This isn’t living the first class life, but it’s first class by shipping container standards: The Travelbox, a crate designed for shipping a person. Bonus: It has its own running water supply.

Enterprise Rent-a-Car adds hybrid SUVs in California
Enterprise will rent you one of 160 Saturn VUE Green Line SUVs in the Bay Area, LA, or Sacramento. Yes, only California. What, no other parts of the country care about fuel consumption? Hybrids: good. Hybrid CARS, and not just SUVs, would be even better… It’s a start.

American Airlines spurns Expedia
If you’re looking for American Airlines’ international fares or premium cabin fares on Expedia, you’re out of luck. The airline is apparently having a little spat with the online agency, and yanked its fares from the site. We’ll see how long that lasts…

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Economy Parking, Premium Skycaps
Chicago’s O’Hare airport is getting skycaps at Economy Parking Lot E. The new service, run by BAGS, Inc., will allow parkers to check in and drop off their bags ($5 fee) before they head back to the terminal via the train. But you’re expected to drop off the bags a whole 2 hours before your flight. That seems like a stretch.

More airlines lower fuel surcharges
Lufthansa and Singapore Airlines are rolling back fuel surcharges for longhaul flights. Good for them, and for us.

Singapore Airlines’ gift from above
A large metal bolt fell off a Singapore Airlines 747 and hit an Australian man’s house. (He should be glad it wasn’t a DC-10 overhead.)

Behind the scenes at American Airlines
Peter Greenberg spent a week checking out American Airlines’ operations behind the scenes. The result is a CNBC special which aired Wednesday. I missed the first showing, but it’s being re-run on Sunday. Plus, clips from the show are available for download here. Will there be coverage of the mice that seemingly infest their planes?

Europeans: ask for your travel records
Privacy advocate Ed Hasbrouck advises Europeans to find out what’s in their travel records. In Europe, you own the rights to your data. In the U.S., the company that holds the data owns the rights. Might as well have a look, to see if there are errors. Much like looking at your credit report to look for fraud…

Ryanair revises fine print, battles its own employees
Britain’s Office of Fair Trading is forcing Ryanair to change the fine print in its ticketing contract. The changes make it easier to file a claim against the airline for lost, damaged, or delayed luggage, as well as expenses due to flight cancellation. This comes on top of employee actions, including unionization threats, promises of a strike by baggage handlers in Spain, and the refusal of Italian crew to sell food on board. (See here for the unionization campaign’s homepage.)

Terrifying liquid
Via Boingboing: a liquid whose name deserves all the TSA scrutiny it can handle. Best to pack this on in your carry-on, if you absolutely, positively need to bring central American cleaning supplies through an airport.

Terrifying lawns
Taking his work home with him? A Los Angeles plane mechanic has turned his front lawn into a mock airplane crash site for Halloween. It uses real aircraft parts from a Gulfstream. Considering it’s in LA, trick-or-treaters might be unfazed and think he’s running a filming location for “Lost.”

Sharkey strikes back
NY Times travel columnist Joe Sharkey, who survived the midair collision in Brazil a few weeks ago, and whose blog was peppered with hate-filled comments after he posted a short statement of concern for the fates of the pilots of his aircraft, lashed out against his (largely Brazilian) critics in a recent post. The investigation into the accident and the surrounding controversy has become quite the drama. Thusfar no word on his site on whether or not he is, in fact, Robin Leach.

A couple readers grumbled via e-mail that yesterday’s post about Singapore Airlines’ improvements to business and first class cabins glossed over the improvements to coach, which most people will actually be flying. In my defense, I was at least discussing scheduled, commercial travel, and not the mega-bling of private jumbo-jets, as was on the front business page of the New York Times yesterday.

So allow me, as a Man of the People, to give economy class its due.

No doubt, Singapore’s economy-class seat is a big step up from the average aircraft seat. In-seat power. A 10.6 inch video screen with on-demand video, computer games, and access to Sun Microsystems’ StarOffice suite. (Bring a USB key, I guess.) Seats are redesigned to offer more room at the knees without actually moving the seats any further apart (32 inches of pitch). Small footrests fold out from the seat in front of you.

I’m not quite sure about the reading lamp (I hope and assume that the overhead lamp remains an option). And the option of a word processor at every seat doesn’t seem like it would be too necessary, if you have in-seat power for a laptop.

Cathay Pacific’s new economy seat appears on its surface to have less sexy features than the Singapore counterpart, but it has the potential to be more comfortable. The seat has a few interesting redesigns, including a hard-shell seatback which prevents the passenger in front of you from leaning back into you. Recline stays within the shell, much like a business class pod. The Cathay literature describes features like active back support. An odd feature: The seatback pocket is moved to the seat itself, behind your calves. This has the potential to be odd or uncomfortable.

But while Singapore is limiting the new seats to their newly-purchased planes, Cathay Pacific is rolling this new seat out across the fleet. We’ll see who “wins.”

Finally, Virgin Atlantic is in the process of redesigning their coach seating. Don’t expect any announcements yet, but the design process and mockups of the seats under discussion are described in detail in this article from Fast Company.

Naturally, any of these improvements would be welcome in the U.S. market.

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