The 1st lie-flat W class? Thai Airways rebrands ex-Virgin Atlantic Upper Class as ‘Premium Economy Plus’
October 8, 2025
Thai Airways is rolling out a new cabin label—Premium Economy Plus—on several Airbus A330-300s it acquired last year from Virgin Atlantic. Rather than selling the inherited herringbone business-class seats as business class, Thai is positioning the 31 lie-flat “Upper Class” seats as an upsell above standard premium economy. The repurposed product will fly on select regional routes from Bangkok, starting October 26, 2025.
The airline announced the new class offering on its Facebook page, but has not yet updated its reservation systems to reflect the change.
Thai Airways acquired the Virgin Atlantic A330s last year
In January 2024, Thai Airways signed a lease agreement with CDB Aviation to acquire two used Airbus A330-300 Aircraft, which Virgin Atlantic previously operated. These aircraft were delivered to Thai later in 2024.
The two A330s kept Virgin Atlantic’s original cabin configuration: 31 lie-flat “Upper Class” seats (1-1-1 herringbone), 48 premium economy recliners (2-3-2), and 185 economy class seats.
Repurposing the Virgin Atlantic Upper Class hardware
According to data on aerolopa.com, Virgin Atlantic’s A330-300 features a herringbone Upper Class layout with 31 Zodiac UCS3 recliner seats arranged in a herringbone pattern.
The seat is 20” wide, with a maximum recline of 42° and converts into a fully flat bed. The embedded in-flight entertainment screen is an 11.1″ HD touchscreen display. Power is available through Universal AC and USB-A sockets. Each seat features a fold-down shelf for drinks and a small, open compartment for stowing personal items.
Thai Airways has also advertised that the bar at the rear of the cabin will be used as a snack area for premium economy plus flyers.
The two leased aircraft also have an existing premium economy cabin installed. It features 48 Safran GB Retreat leather upholstered seats arranged 2-3-2, with a 38” pitch. Each 20” wide seat reclines 7” and has a four-way adjustable headrest and pull-down footrest. The in-flight entertainment screen is a 10.5″ HD touchscreen display, and power is available through Universal AC and USB-A sockets.
Where and when you’ll see Thai Airways’ Premium Economy Plus
Thai Airways will launch the Premium Economy Plus on a handful of short- to medium-haul routes from Bangkok, including Chennai, Dhaka, Hyderabad, Jakarta, and Kathmandu. However, the airline’s reservation system has not yet been updated to include the Premium Economy Plus offering.
It’s also unclear whether paying a higher fare for the lay-flat feature would appeal to passengers flying on shorter routes when there may not be time to sleep.
Thai’s Premium Economy Plus is mostly a hard-product play
Thai is marketing the Premium Economy Plus as a “perfect blend of comfort and space,” but the service offering is limited to “dedicated check-in” and “premium amenities.” Amenity kits are already offered on the airline’s existing premium economy cabins, and Thai states these are unavailable in Premium Economy Plus on flights to Dhaka.
There are no details available on the in-flight menu, whether it will be a business class or a premium economy meal, though the marketing image would suggest the latter.
The rebrand could help Thai monetise legacy lie-flat seats on routes with limited premium demand without incurring the cost of offering a complete business class service. The airline may also be trying to address product inconsistency, though it could have still sold the seats as business class.
The former Virgin Atlantic herringbone arrangement is inferior to the carrier’s newer long-haul Collins Aerospace Super Diamond and Stelia Solstys business seats, which are featured on select A350-900 aircraft. However, it is arguably better than the 2-2-2 business class Jamco Journey seats flying on other of the airline’s A350s—the Virgin product at least provides individual aisle access.
While the fares are not yet published, it would seem that Thai has repurposed the Virgin Upper Class to offer a better-than-W seat at a W-plus (but not quite a J) price point.
It’s unclear whether this new Premium Economy Plus product tier will be offered on any Thai aircraft other than the leased planes in the future. While it is a novel product positioning, it may not set a new competitive standard for premium economy lay-flat seats that the industry will follow. Still, it’s worth watching whether the notion takes.
