Silver lining

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They say every cloud has a silver lining. Matt Pomeroy puts that theory to the test during a flight with business class-only airline Silverjet.

Once you've travelled in business or first class, the idea of flying economy again is akin to moving out of your sound-proofed, spacious house and living in a cave. But the problem is, when you want to upgrade and have that extra bit of leg room, you often have to pay twice as much.

This means that the extra space on planes you rent for a matter of hours often costs more per square foot than property in Manhattan, central Tokyo or Knightsbridge. Still, people want that little bit more. This is why airlines that are purely business class are being launched, with SilverJet being the latest addition.

One of their rivals MAXjet may have recently pulled the red toggle and exited down the inflatable chute in an orderly fashion, but EOS and Silverjet are pushing this new form of air travel.

Silverjet is fighting to meet the public's increasing demand for luxury, while simultaneously trying to keep the price reasonable, by using Boeing 767s configured to fly 100 passengers at a time in flatbed seats. But by keeping costs reasonable has quality been compromised?

The target market is largely going to be businessmen travelling to London, but SilverJet doesn't fly there - it goes to Luton. Luton is not in London, despite efforts of airlines who use the 'London Luton' moniker as the destination.

That said, they've been getting away with 'London Gatwick' for years. But post-9/11 the grey Bedfordshire town has begun to make sense. When rock band Primal Scream refused to fly into Luton because "it wasn't rock and roll enough", people laughed, but while it was once voted the worst town in Britain, the airport is a joy compared to Heathrow. We glided through, rather than being treated like new inmates at San Quentin prison, which seems to be the current trend elsewhere.

In fact, from the start of the entire journey it was smooth. Having a dedicated terminal (five minutes from the main Dubai airport) allowed me to check in my hand luggage 30-minutes before take-off (it's 45 minutes with checked luggage), which made a huge difference. The post 9/11 security measures now mean that flying requires two, sometimes three, hours check in time but this proves it can be done in much less time.

The check-in itself is excellent - it feels more like going on a short-hop flight from a private airport, because you're able to just drop off your bags and passport and head straight to the lounge. Passports are handed back just before you board.

Once onboard, the staff were incredibly attentive in a way that you rarely encounter outside of first class. In their sober blue uniforms they poured champagne and settled people into what was a fairly spacious cabin.

The whole experience had a nice, retro feel, harking back to the golden age of flight. I refuse to believe anyone who says that the staffs are just as nice in every class - it almost feels as if their relaxed and happy demeanour in the more expensive section is reflective of the passengers who are glad to be out of the bear pit of a full economy section.

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