Good to be skeptical. I’ve seen sources saying this is least profitable however I work for an airline and we are constantly told by the company that first class is the biggest money makers and those seats must stay in good working condition. Not to mention, airlines don’t do anything if it doesn’t make them money. They’re not providing bigger seats out of the goodness of their hearts. (In the US anyway)
“Biggest money maker” and “not that profitable” are potentially compatible statements. If—eyeballing the graph above—first class is twice as expensive as business, but takes up three times as much room, then it’s reasonable to assume that it is less profitable, but it’s still absolutely essential that those seats are filled.
I think it's because that first class seats are difficult to fill up, and airlines cannot simply drop the prices to increase the sales because first class seats are essentially luxury goods, with which the price does not only serve as to deliver luxurious services, but more importantly, to separate those VIPs from those "peasants" in the same flight.
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u/Littlesebastian86 4d ago
First class “not actually that profitable”?