Gulf Air latest carrier to axe First Class
First Class could soon be a thing of the past
Bahraini national carrier Gulf Air has become the latest airline to combine its First and Business Class cabins in response to falling demand among premium passengers.
CEO Sameer Majali confirmed that the new strategy will come into effect on 1 March, mirroring moves by several other legacy carriers that are also cutting back premium services.
Australian flag carrier Qantas announced last week that it would be reducing the number of First Class seats on new routes flown by its Airbus A380, while Emirates, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways have all recently taken delivery of new planes with dual-class configurations.
None of the four Boeing 777 jets that British Airways took delivery of last year had First Class cabins.
This shift in strategy away from premium offerings follows a disastrous year for legacy carriers, with the global recession sending demand for First Class seats spiralling down.
Though the International Air Transport Association (IATA) recorded a modest rise in premium traffic last December – around the time that most countries began to emerge from the economic downturn – Saj Ahmad of FBE Aerospace described this as “a blip, not an upward trend”.
He commented: “Gone are the days of luxurious travel, and in its place Premium Economy has risen to the forefront for customers willing to pay that little bit extra for comfort.”
Rather than relying on lucrative premium seats, Mr Ahmad explained, carriers are increasingly focusing on cheap airfares in Economy and boosting revenue through a raft of ancillary charges.
Ryanair, the low-cost carrier often credited with pioneering this business model, generated £548 million in surcharges during 2008, according to US research group IdeaWorks.
© Cheapflights Ltd (Creative Commons image: Richard Moross/ Flickr)
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