Airline review: This business class seat doesn’t recline but it’s brilliant

The flight

Flight AY132, Airbus A350-900 business class, Singapore to Helsinki with a flight time of 13 hours, 40 minutes. Finnair doesn’t fly directly from Australia, but can be included on one ticket with a Oneworld partner like Qantas, completing the second leg to Europe.

Finnair’s Airbus A350 business-class cabin is cleverly designed.

The loyalty scheme

Finnair Plus. The airline is part of the Oneworld alliance.

Carbon emissions

For business class, it works out at 2.9 tonnes. Finnair aims to be carbon neutral by 2045. Passengers can offset flights by purchasing sustainable aviation fuel or supporting climate projects with a nifty offset calculator.

Frequency

Daily.

Checking in

Check in at Singapore by local third-party DNATA staff is underwhelming, lacking the Finnair pizzaz and style. Skip the recommended (and busy) partner Marhaba Lounge for the Qatar Airways Premium Lounge with à la carte dining and quieter sophistication (a Oneworld partner lounge).

The seat

Finnair’s Airlounge has a non-reclining seatback.

3L (window). This is why we’re here, for the AirLounge (as it’s called). This new seat is part of a cabin design overhaul celebrating the airline’s centenary and is revolutionary. For starters, it doesn’t recline. The seat is in two separate pieces and the seatback doesn’t recline. Instead, it is a solid, padded shell intended to simulate the residential feeling of holidaying in a tasteful Finn’s house, if their home featured high-end finishes, design-savvy, luxe midnight blue upholstery and clean Nordic lines. A secret panel in the shell reveals USB A and C chargers and there’s window storage large enough for a laptop, jacket and scarf. The wireless phone charger built into the window ledge is genius. There’s 78 inches (198 centimetres) of legroom with 21 inches (53 centimetres) of width.

Importantly, the seat still offers a lie-flat experience.

But the most important thing is: does it lie flat? It does. But while the seatback stays where it is, you wriggle down to lie in part of the seat that becomes the bed, different from any other business class. The seat well has a panel that elevates to form a spacious mega couch with legs extending into a cylindrical area for lie-flat sleeping. So, while you can sit sideways or cross-legged, stomach sleeping (even with comfy topper, pillow and blanket) requires Mr Bean-like contortions.

Baggage

A whopping two bags of checked luggage up to 32 kilograms each and 10 kilograms of carry-on.

Entertainment

Business class features a large 18-inch entertainment screen.

The inflight entertainment system was already award-winning and has been improved with new offerings (I watch diverse movies from The Alpinist to Gordon Ramsay’s Finland food safari) and a super responsive 18-inch screen (46 centimetres). Plus it looks cool - that Finnair Factor. A bugbear common for many business classes is Wi-Fi is free for just one hour. Really? Don’t be so stingy.

Service

There are 43 business class seats in a 1-2-1 configuration, with 42 passengers and 4 staff. The cockpit is Finnish and the cabin crew are Singaporean. Service comes quickly and efficiently after take-off for this night flight with drinks offered, and dinner orders taken pre take off. A Marimekko kit comes with toothbrush, eye mask, lip balm and elephant-sized slippers and staff conjure an inflight hot chocolate for this grateful non-coffee drinker.

Food

There are three dinner choices including sea bass and braised beef cheek but I opt for a delicious spinach and mushroom lasagne and eschew champagne for the airline’s signature Finnish blueberry juice. The grape tart with vanilla sauce sounds intriguing but choose the coconut mousse with mango coulis which is light and refreshing. Before landing a spinach quiche with bacon, asparagus and fresh fruit is served. Among the champagne (Joseph Perrier Cuvée Royale Brut) and international wines are nods to the destination with Finlandia Vodka, Helsinki Dry Gin and Kyrö Rye Malt Whiskey.

One more thing

Connecting through Helsinki to over 40 European destinations is just one reason to fly Finnair. Take the chance to stop over in one Europe’s most vibrant (downtown’s Design District is worth a stop alone) and culturally saturated hot spots.

Verdict

More, I just want more. I don’t just want to fly Finnair business again, I want their designers to come to my house and Finnair it. Privacy appreciators, aesthetes and side sleepers (like me) will love the new seat design, some won’t, but the aim to shake up business-class design right down to the hotel-like galley, while championing their proud Nordic roots, is a success. Most startlingly, the fact it often costs substantially less than many competitors throws it to the top of the list and makes it the current one to watch.

Our rating out of five

★★★★½

The writer flew as a guest of Finnair.

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