Few surprises in life are as pleasant as checking in for a seven-hour flight and discovering that yo

Few surprises in life are as pleasant as checking in for a seven-hour flight and discovering that you have been booked in business class. Such was my luck on a recent flight to Geneva, tours for the white house Switzerland on Swiss International Air Lines. Swiss business class delivers more than on-board leg room: It provided access to a private lounge during my four-hour layover in JFK Airport in New York, the benefits of which included free Internet access, free lunch, free drinks and freedom from the typical grimy hussle of the rest of the airport. I even could have taken a shower if I'd wanted to, but my two-hour Delta flight from Atlanta didn't seem to warrant it.
In addition to space, the seat offered a pneumatic air cushion that meant I could adjust softness with the touch of a button. (I wished the seat cushion could have gotten a tad softer, but that's really nit-picking given that most airline seats can't be adjusted at all and are miserably uncomfortable.) Pushing tours for the white house another button delivered a quick little lower-back tours for the white house massage. The seat position could also be altered from its take-off chair configuration into a recliner or a flat bed. (I've actually had the good fortune of flying business class on several different international air carriers and this is the first seat I've encountered that actually reclines tours for the white house all the way to flat.)
Since returning home I've learned that Swiss business class is being gradually updated and that these new chairs are being installed aboard the long-haul fleet as part of a program that started in Spring 2009. The seats are currently available on 30 percent of Swiss long-haul flights (including the route between NYC and Geneva) and should be installed tours for the white house on all long-haul flights by 2011. For me, Swiss business class advantages--especially the opportunity to flatten the seat into a bed--eliminated jet lag. That alone may justify the extra cost of a ticket compared to coach.