Stop the press. Singapore Airlines could be bringing us a new business class for their Boeing 777X fleet! The airline, which has already won numerous awards for its business class concepts, might be able to change what we consider business class yet again.

Singapore Airlines New 380 Business Class. Photo: Singapore Airlines.

What are the details?

According to Executive Traveller, not only is Singapore going to bring us a new business class in 2022 when they get their first Boeing 777X, but they might also use the aircraft as an excuse to bring us a new first-class too.

Singapore currently has 20 777-9 aircraft on order from Boeing and expects the first to be delivered in 2022 (much like British Airways, but we might see the first flying for Lufthansa next year).

Singapore Airlines first class
Singapore first class on their current Boeing 777 fleet. Photo: Singapore Airlines

What is the current business class like on the Singapore fleet?

Currently, Singapore operates a variety of different businesses classes. One for their A350:

One for their Boeing 787 fleet:

And one for their Airbus A380.

Singapore Airlines A380 Business Class
Singapore Airlines A380 Business Class. Photo: Singapore Airlines

Their current generation Boeing 777 fleet uses an earlier design as seen on the A350, but a little more narrow. However, it has been praised for its direct sleeping comfort as opposed to the later models that make passengers position their legs diagonally. This design decision is due to Singapore wishing to pack in a higher density of business class seats on their A350 and 787s.

Singapore Airlines business class
Singapore Airlines Boeing 777 business class. Photo: Singapore Airlines

Whether the same will be true for their 777X fleet remains to be seen.

The Boeing 777-9 has been delayed by around nine months now, as problems with the engines plague the testing schedule (originally first flight in March 2019) forcing Boeing to delay deliveries to all of their customers.

What will the concept be like?

We can't say for sure what designs Singapore is going with, whether they will work on the A350 design a bit more that has worked for high-density cabins or opt for a more classical narrow 787 design.

We hope that it is a mixture and has the following modern features.

  • Footwell directly in front of the seat and under the screen, allowing passengers to not crane their necks whilst lying down to see the screen
  • A privacy door much like Qatar's Qsuites or ANA's cabins, give that real sense of privacy onboard. However, if they do have a first-class onboard the 777X it might be likely they use the concept for that cabin instead.
  • A bar or lounge area. The A380 is special that it has so much room for passenger comforts, and a separate bar area is one that is sorely missed from the rest of their widebody fleet. Consider the same design that Virgin Atlantic went for with their A350 (dubbed 'The Loft').
  • Bigger bathrooms. The bathrooms on the Singapore A350 are tiny compared to the 787 and Singapore should take a page from that success story
Virgin A350 Upper Class Review
The unusual and glamorous Loft. Photo: Jo Bailey/Simple Flying

What do you think? What features do you want to see on the Singapore Boeing 777X? Let us know in the comments.