Airport Experience: Check-In and Lounges
MAXjet identified that customers placed high value on a streamlined airport experience, particularly for leisure passengers traveling on day flights where the differences between cradle seats and fully flat beds were less critical. The airline focused on creating a comfortable and quick airport experience at each facility, emphasizing fast check-in, expansive lounge space and amenities. Taking a page from Virgin Atlantic and British Airways, MAXjet offered food and beverages at its lounges as an alternative to eating on board.
Airport LoungesMAXjet used a combination of its own lounge facilities (at Stansted, where four daily departures made such investment economical) and partnerships with premium lounge operators at US airports. At Stansted, MAXjet modernized the SAS Lounge in the international concourse but retained its core Scandinavian design (although the furniture was only partially sourced from Ikea). The lounge featured sweeping views of the Stansted ramp area and the numerous Ryanair and easyJet departures daily. At New York, MAXjet operated from Terminal One from 2005 to early 2007 and from Terminal Four thereafter, using The Lounge as its departure facility. In Las Vegas, Washington and Los Angeles MAXjet partnered with other airlines for lounge access as passenger volumes did not make operating a dedicated facility practical. At each lounge, passengers had access to Wifi, business computers, televisions and other services.
|
|
London StanstedLondon was MAXjet's primary base of operations, and London-based traffic represented a significant majority of MAXjet's overall traffic mix. London Stansted also had the flagship MAXjet lounge with capacity for more than 200 passengers at a time.
|
New York JFKOn November 1, 2005 MAXjet initiated service from Terminal One at JFK, which it shared with China Airlines, Air France, Lufthansa and other European carriers. Terminal One was a congested facility during the evenings and had significantly longer taxi-out times than other JFK terminals. In early 2007, MAXjet shifted to Terminal Four at JFK.
|
Washington DullesService between Washington Dulles and London Stansted began in April 2006 with four weekly departures in each direction. Service continued through the winter of 2006-2007, when it was suspended until the spring season. The route ran again from March through October 2007 until being permanently discontinued in favor of additional Las Vegas flight frequencies.
|
Las VegasThe biggest gamble in the MAXjet route system turned out to be the biggest success, showing that the MAXjet affordable business class model was a natural fit for markets with high volumes of affluent leisure traffic. Las Vegas started with two weekly departures but quickly grew to five weekly flights in each direction, and by October 2007 the route was supporting six weekly flights in each direction.
|
