SWISS Struggles to Fit New First Class Suites on its Airbus A330

Airlines have long sought to pamper their premium passengers, but SWISS’s latest endeavor to introduce all-new first class suites on its Airbus A330 fleet has hit a slight roadblock.

The ambitious “Swiss Senses” project, aimed at overhauling the airline’s premium and economy cabins, has encountered an issue: the new first class cabin, boasting lavish 37-square-foot suites with six-foot walls and locking doors, has thrown the aircraft off balance.

The stark contrast in weight between the luxurious first class area and the streamlined economy seats has rendered the planes too nose-heavy to take flight, posing a significant challenge for the Swiss flag carrier.

Photo: Courtesy of SWISS

“These two contrasting trends [in premium and economy seats] are changing the center of gravity of the aircraft in which such seats are installed,” SWISS told Business Insider.

While the imbalance isn’t enough to disrupt the aerodynamics of some jets, like the airline’s Boeing 777-300ERs and its ordered Airbus A350-900s—where the first class suites will also be installed—it creates major issues for already nose-heavy planes, such as the A330.

SWISS has 14 Airbus A330s, which are due to be retrofitted with new cabins next year. These planes currently fly routes from Switzerland to the east coast of North America and the Middle East.

Photo: Airbus A330. Courtesy of SWISS

The carrier denied that the imbalance was due to a “planning error” and defended the renovations. The new spacious premium cabins were designed with feedback from passengers, who told SWISS “in no uncertain terms that it is time we modernized the cabin interiors of our long-haul aircraft, especially our Airbus A330-300s,” a spokesperson said.

To offset these heavy premium cabins, SWISS will now add more weight to the planes by using a balancing plate positioned in the rear. The exact weight of this plate will be calculated once the cabin interiors are installed and precisely weighed. It won’t be visible to passengers.

But making a plane heavier will cause other problems. A weightier plane will require more fuel to stay aloft and have less capacity to carry cargo. These re-balanced A330s will be more expensive to fly and could end up with shorter ranges. Will fares for the three first class suites offset these increased costs?

Photo: Courtesy of SWISS

The airline says it’s already looking for another solution, potentially reducing the number of first class suites from eight to three, and stripping the doors from its plans for business class suites—a move that may make that class less competitive internationally.

SWISS also considered adding more economy seats in the rear but decided against this to keep the cabin comfortable.

As befits the flag carrier of a country known for secretive bank accounts and billionaire hideaways, SWISS remains committed to first class, even as rivals have ditched it in favor of an elevated business class. Unusually for a European airline, SWISS offers first-class cabins on all its long-haul aircraft and sells some of the only first-class seats still available on transatlantic services.