British Airways’ Club World Sleeper seats you in style

British Airways Executive Club World - this is how business class flying should be: stress-free, with luxurious details, added comfort and a refined service.

British Airways Club World Seat. Courtesy British Airways

Taking a Boeing 747 flight with a British Airways Club World Sleeper seat from London Heathrow to New Delhi, the stress of travel is vanquished early on in the journey. First, there are dedicated British Airways Club World check-in desks at most airports and a generous baggage allowance. I can take three bags, each with a maximum weight of 32 kilogrammes and also two items of hand luggage, a main cabin piece measuring 56 centimetres x 45cm x 25cm and a second at 45cm x 36cm x 20cm, with an allowance of 23kg per bag.

Next, fast track security races me past the queues and into the confines of the lounge in no time. The smartly designed lounges at Heathrow are an ideal, calm environment to wait until boarding and enjoy hot and cold dishes and the refreshments on offer.

At the gate, the preferential treatment continues with priority boarding, and before you know it I’m directed to my seat upstairs on the relatively new B747. The configuration of the seating is in an innovative yin-yang design, where two seats are conjoined into one whole, with passengers facing each other during take-off, after which a separator panel is activated, giving you the option of privacy.

In comparison to similar seats on BA’s Boeing 777-400s, this seat has slightly more room and storage, having an extra deep bin underneath the window that allows for a coat and other sundries.

More storage for shoes is at floor level and there are charging devices, with any necessary adaptors available from the crew on request.

The seat itself is a comfortably constructed chair that converts into a 183cm fully flat bed, with a memory foam headrest and a cosy quilted blanket. I suffer from dry skin at altitude but the toiletries bag is stocked with Elemis skincare products – another appreciated detail. With all luggage stored and having decided what to have for my meal – classic smoked Shetland salmon tartare with pickled cucumber and radish salad followed by seared fillet of British beef with barbecue sauce, spicy potato wedges and Mediterranean vegetables – I can relax and choose from an on-demand and bang-up-to-date library of films, documentaries, TV shows, music, audio books and games. These are enjoyed on a personal 10.4 inch flat screen and noise-cancelling headphones.

And it’s not just the physical comfort that counts; the flight crew are friendly and attentive, without being fussy.

Q&A

Paolo De Renzis British Airways’ Commercial Manager for the Middle East and Central Asia

Who do you consider your main rivals in providing this quality of seat and service?

The Middle East is home to several airlines that are really making their mark in the aviation industry, with compelling products and services and a strong premium offering. At the same time, there is also strong competition from other European carriers. Having said that, we are very comfortable competing with both.

What is it about this seat that attracts and retains customer loyalty?

Passengers in every Club World seat have their own spacious suite for working and relaxing, a seat that converts into a fully flat bed, delicious food and drink … . We have been investing heavily to improve further our customer experience, and as part of this investment we have completed a £300 million [Dh1.84 billion] embodiment programme of Club World and £100m in our new First cabins alone.

Does British Airways have plans to offer Wi-Fi in the near future?

We already offer in-flight connectivity on our exclusive business class service between London City and JFK airports. We will also be running a connectivity trial on one of our Boeing 747s over the course of 2014 to gain deeper understanding of how our customers would use on-board Wi-Fi.

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