Air New Zealand's economy Skynest bunk beds set for launch

Economy passengers on Air New Zealand’s ultra-long-haul flight between Auckland and New York can book a spot in the airline’s bunk-bed style sleeping pods from May, which will take to skies in late 2026.

In what the airline says is a world first, six full-length, lie-flat sleeping pods, are squeezed into the aisle of the new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. The pods, known as “Skynest”, will include fresh bedding, a privacy curtain, ambient lighting and kit with eye-masks, skincare, earplugs and socks.

Premium and economy passengers will still be required to buy traditional seats for the 17-hour flight but have the option of booking a four-hour pod session, for an additional NZ$500-600 ($295; £217) per session. There will be two sessions available per flight initially, and passengers will be restricted to booking one slot.

Air New Zealand Economy Skynest. Photograph: Air New Zealand

Those opting to sleep in the pods will be in close proximity to other napping passengers and will not have room to sit up. “Double-bunking” is prohibited, as is eating snacks or smuggling in children.

The airline’s guidelines ask passengers to “go easy on perfumes and potions” because “not everyone dreams in vanilla-sandalwood-cloud-musk”, but snorers will not be shamed: “statistically, someone’s going to do it. It might be you. That’s okay. Earplugs are provided for everyone, just in case”.

Nikhil Ravishankar, the airline’s chief executive, said for a country as remote as New Zealand, “the journey matters”, and enticing people to the far-flung nation “depends on travellers’ willingness to spend long hours in the air to get here”.

“By giving more people the chance to properly rest on ultra long-haul flights, it helps make travel to and from New Zealand more manageable.”

Air New Zealand first announced it was developing Skynest in 2020. The pods will be available to book from 18 May for services starting in November.

The airline already offers Skycouch, where for an additional fee, a family or passengers who have booked out a row of seats in economy, or have spare seats next to them, can request special footrests that turn the row into a makeshift bed.

Air New Zealand’s announcement comes as other airlines look to introduce perks for economy passengers on long-haul flights. In March, United Airlines announced it would let passengers turn a row of three seats into a lie-flat space from 2027. Qantas’ meanwhile, will have a “wellness zone” for what will be the world’s longest commercial flight connecting Sydney and London, starting in June.

Whether the added perks – often at additional cost – will entice passengers back to airline travel remains to be seen. In the UK, demand and spending has fallen for the first time in five years, because of the rising costs to fuel and disruptions caused by the US-Israel war on Iran, according to Barclays bank.

In March, Air New Zealand suspended its full-year earnings outlook and raised fares due to volatility in the jet fuel markets and the conflict in the Middle East - one of the first carriers to announce price increases. In April, it slashed around 4% of its flights, affecting 1% of its passengers.