In this post, I will explore the economy of scale of airline seats. Are premium class passengers bringing in more income than those in economy.

            For the purpose of this blog, I will examine a four-class British Airways flight to New Delhi from London Heathrow.

            To provide an understanding of airline economics, I will set some parameters.

            As an example, I checked a return flight on British Airways between London Heathrow and New Delhi with a two-week stay in Delhi.

            British Airways operates two daily flights and I chose the second flight which operates a Boeing 777-300 that can hold 299 passengers with a configuration of 14 first class suites, 56 business class suites, 44 premium economy seats, and 185 economy seats.

            A full flight at the lowest price would bring in £404,593.58.

            If we break this down, the costs per cabin are:

• Economy Class: £127,727.70
• Premium Economy: £47,054.48
• Business Class £141,423.52
• First Class: £88,387.88

            On its own, a full business class brings in more money than a full economy cabin. When we look at the premium cabins that figure increases to £276,865.88, more than double the income that economy class brings to British Airways.

            Despite the fact that 62 percent of the seats on the plane are in economy class, the best service is reserved for the other 38 percent. This leads the chasm in quality service that exists on airplanes.

            This is why seat technology in economy class has not advanced as quickly as it has in premium cabins. While some carriers opt for thinner seats in economy as a way of giving you an extra inch or two of leg space, business class, for example, has progressed to enclosed suites and excellent privacy measures.

            But airlines do give you the illusion that economy has improved vastly by giving you a menu when you get in the plane. It’s fancy, but basically they still bring through the cart and ask if you want the chicken or the pasta.