Getting a good night’s sleep on an airplane might be one of the most telling indicators of opulence. After all, if you’re lucky enough to be in a lie-flat seat or even a private room, you’re probably living in the lap of luxury. For most everyone else, a catnap in the sky requires creative reshuffling, maybe a few specific items like a neck pillow, and the acceptance that you probably won’t be too comfortable no matter what you do. However, this will change in September of 2024 when Air New Zealand debuts the first-ever airplane bunk beds exclusively for economy customers.
Called Skynest, the pod-like beds are part of a retrofit of the company’s existing wide-body planes and recently purchased Boeing 787 Dreamliners, according to The Washington Post. Though the airline announced plans for the Skynest in June 2022, it only recently completed testing and announced the date in which travelers can expect to find the pods on their flights. Customers in economy or premium economy will be able to book time slots in one of the six on-board beds, which are surprisingly quiet and private, according to a Post journalist who recently visited the planes. Though the airline is still finalizing details, travelers will be able to spend four-hour rotations in the beds, a period selected to allow for two 90-minute REM cycles and time to fall asleep and wake back up.
Images of the capsule look a bit like a tour bus, with three beds stacked on top of each on either side of an aisle—a layout which reportedly took 170,000 design hours to get just right. Each pod measures six feet, seven inches long and two feet wide, and a faint purple light gives them a distinct futuristic tint. (It dims during a sleep period and turns back on to indicate a turn is up.) “We believe that we’re first to actually put this offering onboard an aircraft,” Leanne Geraghty, the brand’s chief customer and sales officer, told the Post. Though the cost has yet to be finalized, Air New Zealand told the Post it was originally considering a $400–$500 price tag for a four-hour shift. Once the airplane bunk beds debut, customers should be able to book them as an add-on to their standard boarding passes, though the airline also hopes to make in-flight purchases possible for unbooked pods.
