Last weekend, Singapore officially revealed their new cabins for their new A380s. I’ve already shared my thoughts on the new first class suites but this article will focus on the new business class seats.
More seats but more privacy
Singapore maintained the 1-2-1 layout but they went from 66 seats to 38 seats in the same space. Normally, that type of seat increase within the same area would have me concerned about loss of privacy and cabin space, but Singapore already had so much extra space on board their A380s that I didn’t think it would be an issue.
Despite the higher concentration of seats, Singapore actually appears to have raised the privacy levels on these new business class seats. The new seats have a futuristic-pod look to them that allows passengers to sit or lie deeper into their shell of a seat and therefore have more privacy. To me, these new business class seats look stunning. I was already a fan of the seats currently found on the A350 (and some others), but these seats look extra sharp and even more modern.
I was sort of hoping that Singapore would jump into the business class seat race with Qatar and Delta, but I still do think these seats look great.
Narrower seats
These new seats are going to be more narrow.The new seats will be 25 inches wide which is three inches less wide than business class found on other aircraft like the A350 and five inches more narrow than what is currently found on the A350. That sounds like a major downgrade but the Singapore business class seats were already so ridiculously wide that I don’t think space will become an issue. According to Singapore, the new business class seats will also have the same amount of pitch at 55 inches (though some have stated 50 inches).
The biggest question mark for these seats is how much room will we have for our legs/feet?
It looks like there might be a little more room based on some of the photos I’ve seen but I can’t quite tell just yet. I was honestly a little disappointed that Singapore didn’t take a major overhaul and do away with forcing customers to sleep diagonally but I assume that can still be avoided with the bulkhead seats.
New beds
Singapore really changed a lot about their business class when it come to the bedding.
For one, you no longer have to pull down your seat and pull out a bed. This is a huge improvement for people who don’t like to bother with getting out of their seat and packing and unpacking a bed. The new seats will recline into a fully lie flat position with a total length of 78 inches.
The one thing that I don’t think anybody truly expected from Singapore was a double bed. The interior rows will now be able to form an entire double bed. This is a cool concept but snuggling up in a double bed in non-suites does feel a little odd to me. I’m sure some won’t mind but it would feel a bit odd to me. If you’re not up for the snuggles, the interior seats do come with a privacy divider that can be pulled up.
The business class A380 cabin will be divided into three sections: 50 seats, 20 seats and 8 seats. Since Singapore moved the first class suites up to the second deck, the entire A380 upper deck will consist of only premium cabins. And as I already wrote, Singapore will not include a bar or lounge area on the new A380 to the disappointment of some.
The new seats will also have the new IFE from Singapore. This new IFE allows passengers to choose movies and shows via an app and have those ready to go when you arrive at your seat. I believe that if you have a connecting flight, the IFE will even pick up from where you left off previously. The new screens in business class will also be pretty big at 18 inches.
Final word
I think that the new Singapore business class seats look fantastic. I love that they did away with having to pull down your bed and while I do have privacy concerns for the double bed, it’s still a cool concept. The biggest unknown for me is how improved the space for legs and feet will be on these seats. Hopefully it will be a big improvement from prior versions but I’m not sure I’m convinced of that just yet.
Daniel Gillaspia is the Founder of UponArriving.com and the credit card app, WalletFlo. He is a former attorney turned travel expert covering destinations along with TSA, airline, and hotel policies. Since 2014, his content has been featured in publications such as National Geographic, Smithsonian Magazine, and CNBC. Read my bio.
