JetBlue's A321 flies from NY to London and Paris, its business class is a one-of-a-kind suite (video)
The future of intercontinental flights will increasingly be on single-aisle planes such as the A321lr and xlr, Jetblue has a business class suite with a door and a unique service
JetBlue
LGW
United States of America
There are people who travel to go to a concert, there are people who travel to see a museum or an exhibition. I am travel sick and want to try as many companies, cabins, lounges and every other possible travel experience.
In this article:
- Specifications
- Aircraft:
- A321lr
- Class:
- Mint
- Treat:
- JFK - LGW
- Price:
- 1040$
- Book
This in particular was an experience that I had put on my radar from the moment I JetBlue had unveiled to the world the outfitting of its A321lr fleet, aircraft intended for intercontinental flights from the U.S. East Coast to Europe.
The best bonuses
It took almost a year, from the debut of the JFK/LHR before I was able to book a ticket on this route, but I finally did and this was my third experience on an A321 over the Atlantic Ocean. My first time has been aboard TAP Portugal, from Lisbon to Toronto. The second with La Compagnie from Milan to New York EWR, e now from JFK to London Gatwick.
JetBlue does not fly to Italy
This airline is very popular in the U.S., competing with the three sisters and giving all the low-cost airlines a run for their money, obviously flying all over the U.S., to the Caribbean and from New York and Boston to London (Heathrow and Gatwick) and from this summer will also fly from New York to Paris. Italy seems to be in the crosshairs, but perhaps now the flight to Amsterdam should arrive sooner than to Milan.
The ticket
JetBlue does not participate in any alliance, has a loyalty program called Mosaice has partnerships with some carriers, and there are rumors of its possible entry into OneWorld, which would be a great thing. Unfortunately, the partnership with Emirates has been closed, when EK has entered into a major agreement with United, so the chances of getting an award ticket from Italy are very remote.
I then bought a round-trip ticket by taking advantage of a really low price, low by the standards of ticket prices between NY and London, which are a 50% more expensive than any other US/EU route. The outward leg, the one in this review cost me 1040$, a significantly lower price since normally the prices for these tickets are never less than 1500/1800$ one way.
True to the motto that one should never leave a single point on the street I entered my Singapore Airlines Krisflyer card information and accumulated the points for this ticket on my card, which is better than losing them on JetBlue's program.
At the airport
Terminal 5 is the home of JetBlue at JFK in New York, this terminal Is directly connected with the TWA Hotel, a facility that, if you have never visited, is well worth a place on your list of things to see in the Big Apple. If you wish, you can also take a dip in the swimming pool with a view of the airstrip.
Or more simply enjoy a drink in a unique place like the former Trans World Airlines terminal.
Practically only JetBlue, Aer Lingus and occasionally other airlines fly at T5. You can also tell by the configuration, except for a small check-in counter of the Irish carrier, everything else is blue.
I went to the counters dedicated to Mint class passengers, that's what JetBlue's business class is called, and after some embarrassment about my itinerary I got my ticket and headed for security.
This is a terminal that will soon be demolished, work has begun on the new terminal where JetBlue will move in, and this will give way to the T1 expansion, stuff we will see in the next 10 years. In the meantime, for the American airline's passengers, there is no lounge available.
There is only one terrace, called a rooftop, but we are not even on the roof of the terminal the view is nothing special. I worked from one of the seats near the gate waiting for boarding.
There is, however, a small area dedicated to smaller passengers.
Whereas if you travel with Aer Lingus there is a dedicated lounge, but you cannot access it if you fly with other carriers or with cards such as the Priority pass.
I took the opportunity to take a couple of shots of the planes and runway movements.
Overall, the experience on the ground was very un-premium, and comparable to what is offered by any low-cost airline to a passenger in Europe, that is, nothing was offered.
Boarding opened on time with priority given to business passengers, and elite status holders in the Mosaic program.
On board
I honestly didn't care much about the airport, I knew what to expect so all I did was wait until it was time to board and, curious Like a child on the new Disneyland ride, I ran on board as soon as I could.
The cabin configuration is 1-1 for business class, so very different from all other carriers that use this plane for this type of route.
While it is the classic 3-3 for the economy cabin with the first rows of the economy class having more space, between the rows, than the rest of the cabin.
The special feature is that the two first row business class seats are much more spacious than the other 11 rows, and this image from the Aerolopa specialized site makes the idea very well.
These two chairs are called Mint Studio and are sold with an extra at the time you choose your seat on board, compared to all other Mint class seats. The difference in space is not small, in fact thanks to a bench it is possible for two people to fit in this seat during the flight. In addition to more space these two seats offer a larger TV monitor, and the ability to work in two thanks to a larger coffee table and generally more space.
All other premium passengers have to make do with plenty of space, but less than the studio. The seat has an orientation reminiscent of that Of Virgin Atlantic's lousy cabin e Air New Zeland, but looks can be deceiving this is space and not a can of sardines. And each passenger can isolate himself completely from the corriodio by simply closing the door.
Yes because immediately after takeoff you can close the door personal and isolate themselves from what happens outside their sanctuary.
My chair
I was most curious to sit in the seat, because we are aboard an A321lr.
A single-aisle aircraft, the kind used by Easyjet to fly around Europe and dozens of other airlines. ITA Airways will also soon receive this model in its fleet and, from what has emerged, it will be equipped with a true business class cabin to be used on premiu routes such as Middle East and other destinations, offering passengers a true premium cabin and not the usual economy seats.
And I must say that from the first minute I stepped on board, I had the WOW effect.
First of all, personal space is plenty; this seat is better than many business class seats on wide-body aircraft, not only to the worst booths, this chair in my opinion ranks third in the world: the first is Qatar Airways' unmatched QSuite., the second is Oman's Apex Suite And a few other companies, and then I put this, On par with British Airways' new CLub Wolrd Suite..
Obviously keeping in mind that you are in a small plane, not a giant like the 777 or A380, but here JetBlue has truly set a new world standard, and since more and more companies will be flying intercontinental using these planes in the future, it is a given that the benchmark will be JetBlue and the rest of the companies will have to chase.
Everything on board has been taken care of down to the smallest detail, from the elegant handle that unlocks the door, to the many respects. Like the cockpit under the window, the compartment under the seat. The little drawer under the IFE monitor. The beautiful abat-jour, it has all been meticulously researched and is truly a masterpiece of engineering.
The space in the armchair version is plenty, I couldn't touch the leg rest while seated, something that doesn't often happen in seats of far more emblazoned companies.
The chair can be operated by a hand control located in the frame and obviously becomes a bed. Jetblue has thought about making life easy for the passenger here as well, and in fact there is a second button panel to return to the standard position when in bed version.
Perhaps only when you lie down do you feel that the seat is a tiny bit narrower than in traditional business cabins, but it is a detail that does not spoil the experience on board precisely because of the fact that these planes fly 7/8 hour routes and not 12 or 17 where sleeping is important, and not a nap like on a NY/London flight.
The 24 business class passengers have two bathrooms in line with what one has on a conventional aircraft.
Service
The sleeping kit is left on the chair inside a washable bag and contains pillow and blanket.
The beauty kit comes in two pieces, both made from reclaimed plastic.
Inside much more than the traditional contents. In addition to the usual socks,mask, toothpaste (in pills) toothbrush and earplugs, protein, creams and candy are distributed.
Aboard this flight were a total of 3 flight attendants, the same number that was on La Compagnie and that you would find on any flight with so few seats on board. I have no idea what it is like to work on such a plane on a long haul, but it is also true that already Low-cost carriers and others make 6-hour routes with full planes and reduced staffing, the difference being that here you are not flying from Tenerife to Riga, but from London to New York.
The crew was SQUISHED, I talked a lot with Eric the purse of this flight. His son is studying in Italy and he too is looking forward to this company flying to our country.
Food & Beverage
At the place the menu is handed out, I also really like the idea of the crew putting their names by hand on the cover. There are only 3 of them it's nice to know their names and start a conversation by saying "Hey Joe.."
Ordering is self-service, and it is really convenient. Each passenger makes up their order through the screen, you can choose what you want, when you want it, and how you want it. Great idea.
Immediately after takeoff my cocktail arrived. JetBlue has its flight attendants take bartender courses and you can hear them shaking all the time, partly because Americans are wont to drink a lot.
Dinner is served in a single tray, without many frills. The presentation, however, is neat and the tray, like the table, is extra large.
I ventured pasta and chicken, and was not dissatisfied with the culinary proposal.
Breakfast is served just before landing, but if you wish you can sleep in and take it packed when you disembark. I must say that the whole catering proposal more than satisfied me, I repeat never forget that there are not the spaces of a wide-body plane, here every cm counts double.
IFE
Here JetBlue delivers the coup de grace to the competition. Forget small monitors, unresponsive touch systems. We're on another planet here. Starting with the 17″ TV, which becomes 22″ for those sitting in row 1.
Hundreds of content, movies and TV series. There are even complete series and not single episodes that do nothing but make the passenger nervous. If Delta has Apple TV+ and British Airways a few episodes of Paramount+ here we have HBO, Showtime, and AMC+. I watched the NFL conference finals thanks to the five live TV channels available on board.
Dulcis in fundo the best noise cancelling headphones I have ever found aboard an airplane.
Not only was the wi-fi free, but the speed was insane. Almost 40MB, enough to download whatever you want from Netlfix or watch live whatever you want.
There are two multiple sockets to charge whatever you want. A traditional USB socket and a USB-c socket, and finally a pad for wireless cell phone charging.
In conclusion
Espresso and fresh squeezed orange juice to end the trip. My expectations were high and I must say they were exceeded. What JetBlue manages to do in the few inches of an A321lr is what all other airlines should copy, all C-levels in the rest of the aviation world should try.
Pro
- The booth
- The chair
- IFE
Against
- The lounge at T5 is missing