Earlier this year I flew Cathay Pacific’s new A350 from Taipei to Hong Kong. I felt like the seat was an upgrade, and while the finishing touches were just a little bit better, the comfort factor was a step up. I think it would be safe to say that Cathay Pacific’s new A350 business class is marginally better than their A330 business class.
Cathay Pacific Airbus A350-900 Business Class
Well, despite assessments starting to come up, as one does I was looking through new reviews of Cathay Pacific’s A350 business class product.
Specifically I stumbled upon Mark Castro’s (more recent) business class flight from Manila to Hong Kong, which was more recent and only published less than a week ago. Specifically the picture that struck me the most was this one:
Cathay Pacific Airbus A350-900 Business Class
Take a look at the seat on B-LRA that I took in June:
Cathay Pacific Airbus A350-900 Business Class
Notice the difference? Specifically, have a look at the headrests:
Cathay Pacific is installing slightly different variations of the A350 seat aboard their aircraft. Personally, I like having the headrest slightly jutting out (my version) better than the version with the headrest embedded, as it’s easier to sleep with your head propped up slightly, though I get that having a “straighter” headrest is more comfortable.
I guess we’ll just have to see when I get on my next Cathay Pacific A350 business class flight so I can compare and contrast the differences.
Bottom Line
While I like the finishes of the “newer” seat, I do think the “older” seat would be better for longhauls, but ultimately with the presence of a nice pillow it doesn’t really matter. I’m keen on trying their A350 business class product at one time or another longhaul, so I’ll see how that goes then.