Six of the best first-class flight cabins

BY-JOHN ARLIDGE: When British Airways launched its new Dreamliner aircraft in October it unveiled its most exclusive first-class product: the aircraft includes a new first-class cabin that accommodates just eight passengers. Other BA aircraft typically hold 14 in first, so guests here can expect to enjoy the most intimate premium experience the carrier provides.

But other airlines aren’t being complacent. The Gulf carriers, in particular, have established an enviable reputation with innovation - helped by their provision of on-board showers and private three-room suites with butler service - and travellers who wish to splurge can expect to be treated reverentially by their chosen airline. Below we look at exactly what’s on offer for those turning left with six of the world’s very best airlines.

British Airways

With the Gulf carriers innovating heavily, it’s easy to forget that it was good old British Airways that invented luxury international flying. The world’s first first-class international service was a BA flight between London and Paris in 1919. Now the airline’s newly unveiled Dreamliner first-class cabin is attempting to regain some of that past glamour and prestige.

Seat: Made of fabric, not leather, which some will think cheap. But there is enough storage for a starter home, including a hanging wardrobe, a split-level cupboard and two “bins”, plus a new vanity mirror and large table.

Technology: BA does not have as many films as other carriers, but more than enough for most travellers. Watch the entertainment as and when on the new 23in fixed screen. No Wi-Fi.

Food: Lunch of salmon, crab boudin and poached lobster with lemon, Thai shallots and salsify purée, followed by seared North Atlantic cod fillet and flaked salt-cod with pistachio and cauliflower couscous. The champagne is Laurent-Perrier Grand Siècle. Unlike on the regular, smaller 787, there’s a cappuccino maker.

Service: Perhaps it’s the “To Fly, To Serve” crest embossed on the wall or maybe it’s the influence of BA’s new Australian-born customer experience chief, Troy Warfield . Whatever it is, BA’s service has vastly improved. The crew really want to spoil you and the pukka pilots are back in the First cabin again, meeting and greeting.

With Qantas, dinner might be miso-glazed Patagonian toothfish with broccolini, roast pumpkin and sesame dressing

Extras: BA is smartening up its First lounges, which is good as they still lag behind Virgin’s world-beating Clubhouses. Concorde Bars have just opened in Singapore and Dubai, which feature black Nero marble, oak flooring and 70s-style lounge chairs. No chauffeur-driven cars, but a whopping 210lb (95kg) luggage allowance.

After a jumpy few years, during which it lost money, then divorced BA and ran off with Emirates, the Kangaroo is flying high again. Its A380s have the best livery in the skies and the most stylish interiors, the work of Sydneysider and Apple designer Marc Newson. Its service is the most authentic of any airline.

Seat: Swivels to face forward or towards your dining companion sitting on the ottoman. The seat extends to a 212cm fully flat bed and you sleep on two supersoft sheepskin mattresses.

Technology: Qantas is the first airline to offer Samsung Gear Virtual Reality headsets on certain flights, so some travellers can access the virtual worlds of films or swim with turtles on the Barrier Reef while flying over it. No Wi-Fi, but entertainment is available on demand and can be viewed on 17in touchscreens.

Food: For dinner, Neil Perry, of the feted Rockpool restaurant in Sydney, offers miso-glazed Patagonian toothfish with broccolini, roast pumpkin and sesame dressing, with Tyrrell’s Vat 1 Hunter Semillon 2007 . For breakfast it’s Shaw River buffalo-milk yoghurt with banana and passionfruit, followed by sweetcorn fritters with bacon, avocado, crème fraiche and tomato jam. Plus Vegemite if you want it.

Service: Like Virgin and Air New Zealand, Qantas has not forgotten that what makes a great airline is personality. Almost all its staff are Australian and they mix formality with how-ya’-goin’ charm. You really do feel as if you are in Australia.

The champagne bar on board Qatar’s A380 is decorated with freshly-cut flowers and its chandeliers are finished in real gold

Extras: Chauffeur service, spa treatments in the lounge’s Aurora Spa, and a First Host to assist with travel needs. Luggage allowance: 110lb (50kg).

Qatar Airways

Qatar raises the bar, literally. The champagne bar on board its A380 is decorated with freshly-cut flowers and its chandeliers are finished in real gold. With only eight seats, Qatar’s is the smallest of any A380 first-class cabin and the removal of overhead bins means the ceilings feel high.

On Singapore Airlines the “seat” is in fact a mini-room with Italian leather walls and plantation-style shutters

Seat: The biggest, plushest, softest in the sky, with a 90-inch seat pitch, 180-degree flat-beds and a massage function. Comes with Missoni pyjamas and slippers. The table extends to allow two people to dine comfortably.

Technology: The Android-based system features a touchscreen handset, giving you a “second screen experience”. You can watch a film on the 26in, high-definition screen, follow the flight progress on your handset, and watch the pilot’s view from the external landscape cameras. Wi-Fi is available and entertainment options are extensive. Over 2,000 entertainment options - meaning different films, box sets, albums, games and so on - are available on demand.

Food: Plenty of caviar, of course, but it’s the wine that stands out: Krug Grand Cuvée, Joseph Drouhin Clos de la Garenne Premier Cru Puligny Montrachet 2010, Château d’Yquem Sauternes Premier Cru Superieur 2008.

Service: Attentive but a little stiff and over-deferential. Like the country whose name it bears, Qatar Airways needs to loosen its dishdasha.

Extras: No chauffeur service, which seems odd. But the best washbags, with large-sized Armani products.

Singapore Airlines
One of the perks of being first to get an A380 is that you can name your first class something different: Singapore Airlines chose to call theirs Suites Class. In other planes it remains first.

Seat: A mini-room with Italian leather walls and plantation-style shutters. Some people like being behind walls (albeit smart ones), while others prefer to see and be seen.

Technology: Wi-Fi and more than 1,000 hours of on-demand entertainment, plus a 23in screen.

With Emirates you can have a morning shower, and when you get back to your seat there will be a fresh ginger, mint and lime wake-me-up juice

Food: The only airline to offer both Krug Grand Cuvée and Dom Perignon 2004 – with caviar. And that’s before take off. Once in the air, you can enjoy the meal you ordered when you booked, which might be lobster thermidor or just a simple cheese toastie.

Service: The best in the sky.

Extras: Singapore Airlines knows that the worst part of air travel is the airport. So at its Changi home, first-class passengers have their own terminal and pass through private immigration and security. An escalator leads to the first-class lounge where, if you are flying on an A380, you are welcomed into the Private Room, which is strictly for Suites Class passengers only. The only black mark against Singapore is the livery of its A380s – it’s as bad as the interiors are good.

Luggage allowance: 110lb (50kg).

Etihad Airways
James Hogan, the head of Etihad Airways, thinks airlines have become too much like airlines and not enough like hotels. “An airline is aeroplanes. We’re a hospitality company. We want to create more of a boutique hotel experience,” he says. His approach is working and setting new standards.

Seat: High-walled First Apartments off a single aisle come with a Poltrona Frau leather seat and separate chaise longue that converts into an 80in bed. There’s a wardrobe, chilled mini-bar and vanity unit. Adjacent apartments can be combined to create a double bed.

Technology: More than 100 films, 250 TV shows, 16 radio channels, a 350 CD library and up to 60 games. Seat-to-seat calls and e-chat means you can commiserate with anyone confined to economy. Wi-Fi is available.

Food: Meals are prepared by a dedicated onboard chef who can create such “off-menu” items as made-to-order eggs, rib-eye steak or grilled fish. With a flute of Billecart-Salmon champagne.

Service: Rivals Singapore Airlines for the most attentive in the sky. The Residence, Etihad’s new three-room suite in first class, even comes with its own Savoy-trained butler.

Extras: Etihad has joined Emirates in offering a shower. It has also introduced The Lobby, an on-board area with seats, tables and a large-screen TV showing live sport. Etihad’s lounge in Abu Dhabi has a cigar bar, and the airline offers a chauffeur service. Luggage allowance: 140lb (64kg).

Emirates
Emirates is the world’s biggest global carrier, flying more than 143 billion international passenger miles a year, compared with around 87 billion miles flown by United and Lufthansa. It’s also among the most influential airlines, breaking up old alliances and introducing innovative perks, notably showers.

Seat: Emirates is all about privacy. The seat is a suite, with sliding doors that you can close and retire behind. There’s also a private minibar.

Technology: With more than 2,000 channels of movies and TV shows, on demand and in multiple languages, this is the best entertainment system in the sky. Wi-Fi and personal mobile-phone services are speedy and simple to use.

Food: The best breakfast at 39,000ft. Wake, shower with Bulgari soaps and shampoos, and when you get back to your seat there will be a fresh ginger, mint and lime wake-me-up juice, and a cappuccino with the Emirates logo picked out in the chocolate on top – as well as a cheeky glass of Dom Pérignon 2004, if you like.

Service: Global, as befits the world’s largest airline whose hub is a centre of globalisation. Speak any language and the crew probably will, too.

Extras: Chauffeurs to and from the airport. Excellent if robust Thai therapies in the Timeless Spas in Emirates’ lounges, and retro touches such as on-board stationery. The only drawback is Dubai International, which during its peak hours between 10pm and 3am can feel like a bit of a zoo. Luggage allowance: 110lb (50kg).