All-business class market heats up

Silverjet has joined Eos and Maxjet in the increasingly crowded all-premium London-New York market.

UK-based Silverjet launched in late January a daily flight linking Luton and Newark airports using one Boeing 767 configured with 100 angled lie-flat seats. New York-based Eos operates 757s configured with 48 horizontal lie-flat seats and since its late 2005 launch has quickly expanded to three daily flights connecting JFK with Stansted.

Washington-based Maxjet, which also launched in late 2005, operates 767s with 102 old-style business class seats. It still only has one daily flight on the JFK-Stansted route but is not concerned by the intensifying competition. "We were the first ones with an all business class product. We now have so many copycats. That's great," says Maxjet chief executive Bill Stockbridge

Silverjet chief executive Lawrence Hunt is equally unconcerned: "If others want to join the party, great. It helps us create the market."

Hunt claims the New York-London premium market is so large (7,000 seats per day) network carriers have not been compelled to match fares offered by Maxjet and Silverjet, which start at £600 ($1,170) to £800 return respectively. He says business and first class accounts for 18% of the 4.2 million annual passengers on the route and premium economy accounts for another 11%.

"A lot of our customers are switching from major carriers but most have traditionally flown economy or premium economy," he says. "We will grow the overall size of the business class market by taking on economy and premium economy passengers."

Maxjet and Silverjet fares are generally lower than the premium economy fares at British Airways and Virgin, which have horizontal lie-flat business seats priced closer to the Eos fare of £3,000. Eos targets passengers seeking a first class experience for a business class fare.

Hunt acknowledges major carriers will more likely fight back when Silverjet launches services on less dense routes in 2008. It is now studying 30 potential destinations from Luton, including China, India and South Africa where bilateral restrictions will force Silverjet to team up with a local carrier.

For more on Silverjet, read our web interview with Lawrence Hunt at www.flightglobal.com/Silverjet. For more on Maxjet read our blog at www.flightglobal.com/ABblogs/ Americas.

Source: Airline Business