Delta now earns more from premium than in coach, and United and American keep pouring seats into premium economy. The back of the plane is shrinking.
The reason is not complicated. Households earning more than $100,000 a year account for roughly 75% of all leisure airline spending in the US, and those travelers have shown they will pay for a bigger seat without stepping all the way up to a lie-flat fare. Premium economy sits exactly in that gap. It captures the leisure traveler who wants more room on a long flight and the budget-conscious business traveler whose company will not approve business class. Airlines have noticed that this customer is both willing to spend and reliably profitable.
Some carriers, Japan Airlines, ANA, and LATAM all offer Premium Economy travelers on international long haul routes lounge access. As of last year, almost all airlines offered amenity kits in premium economy cabins and elevated menus that are above coach’s “chicken or beef” but below business class. Singapore Airlines even offers its Book The Cook service. Those are genuine distinctions above coach that mirror domestic first class (but not trans-continental flights) but without the pomp and ceremony.
A great solo travel tip spotted this week on Live and Let's Fly.
