(Image source from: Foxnews.com)
Travel is becoming easier for those flying with Air New Zealand. After launching Sky Couch, which allows footrests to fold up and turn three economy seats into a flat area, the Auckland-based airline plans to offer economy travelers four-hour naps in private sleeping pods on select long flights. Air New Zealand, famous for its scheduled flights to 20 domestic and 28 international locations in 18 countries mostly around the Pacific Rim, has added this new feature to its economy class. At an event in New York on Tuesday, Air New Zealand introduced its Skynest pods. These consist of six sleeping pods that are lit with a purple glow. The individual pods are organized like bunk beds, piled atop one another. They can fit six passengers and will take the place of five seats in the new Boeing 787-9 aircraft, which will also have a larger premium-class setup. The airline announced it will start the Skynest pods service in November, operating flights from New York to Auckland. The new sleeping pods will be installed on Boeing 787-9 planes that serve the airline's longest route, which is nearly 9,000 miles.
Nikhil Ravishankar, the CEO of Air New Zealand, shared with The New York Times, “Our location in the world definitely pushes us to get this right. ” Each thin yet comfortable mattress comes with a pillow, a folded dark blanket, a seatbelt, USB-A and C ports, and a curtain for privacy. They are designed for comfort and measure about 6 feet 8 inches in length. Passengers will not need to set alarms for the four-hour naps. Instead, lights will turn on automatically when the session is over. If someone is still sleeping, a crew member will wake them up. The crew will then take about 30 minutes to change the bedding before the next passenger's time in the pod begins. Travelers must book the pods ahead of time to use this service. Online reservations will start on May 18 for travel beginning in November. With this service, four hours in one of the private pods will cost USD 495, which is about Rs 46,223, in addition to a roughly USD 900 (approximately Rs 84,046) one-way economy fare. Together, an economy-class ticket with a Skynest pod on Air New Zealand will total USD 1,395 (around Rs 1,30,272).
In March this year, United Airlines announced it would provide its own version of the couch, named Relax Row, starting in 2027. Vietnam Airlines and Azul Airlines have also created similar lie-flat economy rows. The dark blue airplane seats in these setups can transform into a couch, complete with a pillow, blanket, and sometimes a stuffed animal.
