KLM Unveils Premium Comfort (Premium Economy)

Air France-KLM is sharing information about its premium cabins. Air France's new business class with doors will be arriving this summer and the new first class suite will be arriving late in the year.

The new premium economy cabin will debut this summer.

Details of KLM premium economy experience

Premium economy has become a popular cabin on European long haul airlines. While Air France has been installing premium economy on most long haul planes, KLM hasn't.

Air France-KLM, Delta, and Virgin Atlantic have a joint venture. Delta has been installing premium economy as well, so it makes sense for KLM to do the same, so that the business can more easily sell premium economy fares.

The new premium economy cabin will be called Premium Comfort. The seats were designed by Collins Aerospace, and they are lighter than previous versions. It wouldn't be great news in terms of comfort, but I guess we'll see once there are some reports.

The key features of the premium economy experience are listed here.

• Premium economy will be installed on 777s and 787s, and the cabin will feature 21-28 seats; on the 787 the cabin will be in a 2-3-2 configuration, while on the 777 the cabin will be in a 2-4-2 configuration
• Premium economy will feature 38″ of seat pitch and 8″ of recline (compared to 31″ of seat pitch and 5-7″ of recline in economy)
• Premium economy will offer better entertainment and connectivity, including a 13.3″ personal screen (compared to 9-11″ in economy), and both USB and 110v outlets (compared to just USB outlets in economy)
• Premium economy will offer priority services, including SkyPriority check-in and boarding and an extra baggage allowance
• Premium economy will feature improved inflight amenities, including noise canceling headphones, an amenity kit, and better meals and drinks than you’ll find in economy

There are pictures of the new premium economy cabin. It's hard to know what to think of seats based on media images, since I think they don't choose very large passengers. The seats look a bit above average for premium economy. The location of the outlets is odd.

How KLM is reconfiguring planes with premium economy

It isn't clear when the premium economy will be rolled out. Premium economy will first be offered to North America, and customers will be able to book it from the end of July 2022.

As premium economy is installed on each aircraft type, seating capacity will change.

• The Boeing 787-10 will see an overall reduction of 26 seats; economy will lose 66 seats, while there will be 28 premium economy seats and 12 additional extra legroom economy seats
• The Boeing 787-9 will see an overall reduction of 19 seats; economy will lose 40 seats, while there will be 21 premium economy seats
• The Boeing 777-300 will see an overall reduction of 27 seats; economy will lose 68 seats, while there will be 24 premium economy seats, one additional business class seat, and 16 additional extra legroom economy seats
• The Boeing 777-200 will see an overall reduction of 32 seats; economy will lose 71 seats, while there will be 24 premium economy seats, one additional business class seat, and 14 additional extra legroom economy seats

When the business class will be introduced on the Boeings, I think we will see the reconfiguration of the planes first, followed by the introduction of the new class next year. I could be wrong, but that makes sense to me.

Bottom line

The new premium economy will be installed on both the Boeing 777 and the Boeing 787 in the near future. Premium economy is becoming more and more popular, and it is logical that Air France has had it for years.

Premium economy passengers can expect more spacious seats, priority services, and better amenities. I have a hard time getting excited about airlines introducing cabins that look similar, since they almost always look the same. It isn't like business class, where you see airlines taking wildly different directions.

What do you think about the new premium economy cabin?