Looks great! Finnair unveil new business class seats and introduce premium economy class

Finnair is spending €200 million on brand new business class seats, the introduction of premium economy and a refresh of economy class. The new seats have been unveiled today and they’re looking great.

The new cabins will be installed on all the oneworld alliance’s Airbus A350 and Airbus A330 aircraft. The initial routes will be announced in due course, with sales commencing from 1 March 2022.

Finnair’s New Business Class

Taking inspiration from lounge furniture, the Collins Aerospace AirLounge™ seat has been chosen by Finnair and they are the launch customer for it. David Kondo from the airline says, “By doing away with complicated seat mechanisms and using 3D curved shells, we’re able to provide a larger flexible living space. This allows you to move more freely and take up different positions that traditional aircraft seats do not allow.”

Interestingly, the seat has a fixed shell and no recline, but has been designed to allow various sitting positions. As with any business class seat today there is USB charging, storage, lighting, a Do Not Disturb sign, and a mattress and duvet is provided for sleeping. You can read all of the information on the new business class in the Finnair Press Release here. Doing away with the traditional seat mechanisms will avoid the risk of crushed mobile phones for one, and probably save a lot of money in maintenance as well.

Finnair Introduce Premium Economy

A trend that seems to be snowballing among airlines is Premium Economy. It is reported that this is the most profitable cabin for some airlines, so it is not surprising Finnair is following suit. For the seat, the “Vector™ Premium” seat, which is manufactured by HAECO, has been selected.

With memory foam cushions, 8″ of recline, a single leaf tray table and a maximum of 26 passengers per aircraft, it promises to be very nice. I never mind flying premium economy as it’s a haven of calm compared to the back, and this looks on par with other airlines. The full details are in this Finnair Press Release.

New Tableware Too!

To complete the on board vibe, new tableware will also be introduced. The new Iittala Kuulas tableware is designed by Harri Koskinen, and includes plates, bowls, cups, tumblers, wine glasses and cutlery.

The most interesting point for me is that it is 20% lighter than what it replaces. That is always good for saving fuel and in turn reducing the environmental impact of flying. Here’s another press release for those who want all the details.

Overall Thoughts

Finnair’s new business class is very intriguing and I’ll be curious to see how comfortable it really is. It seems to have gone through a few iterations before making it to the final product, so I am sure it is well tested.

Great to see the Helsinki based airline launching two entirely new seats. Many other airlines have been customising seats already in service with other airlines, making them all largely the same from a passenger perspective. This truly offers something different.

I’m flying with Finnair on an Airbus A350 in April, so here’s hoping I manage to snag one with the new seats. That would be a real treat, but we shall see what happens.

What do you think of Finnair’s new business class seats? How about the Premium Economy cabin? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.

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All images via Finnair.