The world’s worst business class plane cabins revealed

Egyptair comes last in new ranking

Egyptair scored worst (AP)

When travellers stump up the money for a business class seat on a flight, they expect a certain level of quality - but paying more doesn’t always guarantee a better experience.

A study by Bounce luggage storage, compiled by using reviews aggregated via the blog businessclass.com, has ranked airlines from across the world on seven criteria - including “cabin and seat”, “cuisine” and “amenities and facilities” - to reveal which business class cabins deliver, and which aren’t worth splurging on.

Egyptair, Egypt’s flag carrier, slunk into last place, scoring the lowest out of all the airlines for every category. It was commended for acquiring some new Boeing 787-9 aircraft, but “much of its fleet is outdated at this point”, said the study.

The airline scored a paltry 5.71 out of 10 overall, scoring particularly badly for its food offering and penalised for the fact it doesn’t serve any alcohol onboard its flights.

The “reverse herring-bone” layout of the business class cabin’s seat also saw marks detracted.

It’s not the first time the airline has been lambasted for its business class experience.

The Live and Let’s Fly travel blog previously described the offering as “tragic”, remarking that there was “such potential, but such a failure to deliver.”

Other airlines also struggled to pass muster in the exacting rankings, including Panama’s Copa Airlines and Air China.

They scored 6.71 and 7.14 respectively, both faring badly for service and entertainment options onboard.

Airports were also ranked on their business class experience, based on the lounge experience, connections and percentage of on-time flights.

Philippines’ Ninoy Aquino International scored bottom with 0.88 out of 10.

It was followed by London Gatwick and Newark’s Liberty Airport.

But it wasn’t all bad news for the UK: Heathrow came top for its business class offering, followed by Japan’s Haneda Airport and Singapore’s Changi Airport.

Worst business class airlines

Egyptair (5.71)

Copa Airlines (6.71)

Air China (7.14)

Best business class airlines

Singapore Airlines (9.57)

Qatar Airways (9.29)

Cathay Pacific (9.00)

Worst business class airports

Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Philippines (0.88)

London Gatwick, UK (1.82)

Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey, US (2.03)

Best business class airports

London Heathrow, UK (7.10)

Haneda Airport, Japan (7.03)

Singapore Changi Airport, Singapore (6.83)