Neither Delta nor American Eagle plans any change in its service as a result of the US Airways decision to add first class, spokesmen for the carriers said.
America West, which is based in Phoenix, is the only carrier offering first class on junior, or regional, jets -- on 16 of its 34 Canadair Regional Jets, which typically are all coach with two seats on each side of the aisle.
That's what you get in the First Class cabin on Swiss International Airlines, the carrier of oligarchs, tax-evaders, and their rich, violently anorexic molls.
Rule 240 is an old regulation that still holds: In the U.S., if a cancelation or delay is the carrier's fault (not caused by weather or a labor dispute), the airline must get you off to your destination within two hours of the originally scheduled departure-even if that means on another carrier, in first class, at no extra charge to you.
Touted by the airline as "your home above the clouds," the first class offering from the flagship carrier is nothing short of regal, with a culinary selection fielded by Michelin-starred chef Dominique Gauthier, bespoke toiletry packs from leading international brands and full-length mattress beds.
At a time when some carriers have eliminated first class altogether (in order to focus on business class), 35 others have not only kept it, but kicked it up a gilded notch.
To compile our list, we worked with Skytrax, a U.K.-based airline and airport quality ranking firm, which sent 16 auditors into the field for six months to assess the 36 carriers who offer first class service on their international, long-haul routes.
Tadayoshi Koga, a 19-year-old flight petty officer first class, was launched from the Japanese aircraft carrier Ryūjō as part of the June 4 raid.
There were also low-cost carriers like Southwest and People Express that didn't mess with first class at all.
Remember the "heroic rescue" of Private First Class Jessica Lynch from an Iraqi hospital, or President Bush's made-for-TV landing on an aircraft carrier, with a "Mission Accomplished" banner as a dramatic backdrop?
