First look: Air New Zealand’s all-new B787-9 Dreamliner cabins

In October 2024, an Air New Zealand Boeing 787-9 touched down at Changi Airport, just before lunchtime. This flight, however, wasn’t carrying any passengers. Instead, NZ6013 taxied into an ST Engineering Aerospace hangar, where engineers promptly began to rip out its seats, carpets, overhead bins, and pretty much the entire interior.

Their haste was understandable. ZK-NZH, the aircraft that had just arrived, was the first of 14 Air New Zealand B787-9s to undergo a tip-to-tail retrofit that would see brand new seats fitted across all three cabins. 

While the airline had originally hoped to debut these seats on a factory-fresh B787-9, production woes at Boeing had forced them to consider the retrofit option instead. And with the project already several years behind schedule thanks to COVID-19 and supply chain issues, haste was the order of the day.

Six months and two test flights later, ZK-NZH returned to Auckland on 16 April 2025, and is finally ready to operate its inaugural flight, which is scheduled for 19 May 2025 to Brisbane. 

Air New Zealand has only released renderings of its new cabins so far, but ahead of the inaugural flight, media were invited to tour the aircraft and experience the seats firsthand.

Air New Zealand’s new Dreamliner cabins

In 2022, Air New Zealand unveiled plans to introduce brand new cabins on its Dreamliner aircraft, promising “the best sleep in the sky”. These new cabins had already been several years in the making— and in fact might not have broken cover so early if not for a leaked regulatory filing uncovered by PaxEx.Aero.

The plans called for a completely redesigned Business Premier seat, along with a sub-variant called the Business Premier Luxe (more on that later), as well as all-new Premium Economy and Economy seats. 

It wasn’t just the seats that were being upgraded, however. During its time in the hangar, ZK-NZH also received:

• New carpets throughout the aircraft
• New curtains between cabins and galleys
• New wallpaper, hands-free waste disposal, and amenity holders in the lavatories
• New inflight entertainment screens and system
• SkyPantry, a new self-serve feature for the Economy cabin

A second B787-9 (ZK-NZI) is currently in Singapore undergoing its reconfiguration, and Air New Zealand plans to reconfigure all 14 of its existing B787-9 aircraft by the end of 2026 in a project that will cost the company NZ$500m (S$390m).

Eventually, Air New Zealand will be operating two types of B787-9s:

• 14x Retrofitted B787-9s, which have 26 Business Premier, 32 Premium Economy and 213 Economy Class seats
• 2x Factory-fitted B787-9s, which have 42 Business Premier, 52 Premium Economy and 125 Economy Class seats

Air New Zealand also has a further 6x B787-10s on order which will also feature the new cabin products, though the actual configuration is unknown at this time.

The factory-fitted B787-9s, which are expected to be delivered from early 2026, are designed specifically for ultra-long range flights like Auckland to New York. To that end, they will have a lower seating capacity and will also feature Skynest, the bunk bed pod where Premium Economy and Economy passengers can book a full-length lie-flat bed for four hours at a time.

With the refits, Business and Premium Economy seating capacity will increase significantly, resulting in a more premium-focused configuration.

Tour: Air New Zealand’s new B787-9 cabin

Air New Zealand recently offered the media a tour of ZK-NZH, providing the first real-world look at its newly retrofitted cabins.

This overview highlights what passengers can expect—but stay tuned, as I’ll be publishing a separate article with an in-depth look at the Business Premier cabin soon.

Business Premier and Premier Luxe

The 26 Business Premier seats configured in a 1-2-1 inward facing herringbone layout, with every passenger having direct access to the aisle. Seats are based on the Safran Visa platform, for which Air New Zealand is the launch customer, and measure 20.5 inches wide— a snug fit, to say the least.

Several airlines have introduced “Business Plus” products that take advantage of the space at the front row of the cabin, which was historically used for storage. On Air New Zealand, this comes in the form of Business Premier Luxe, four first-row seats featuring sliding privacy doors and an ottoman. 

The ottoman is large enough to accommodate a second passenger (complete with seatbelt), allowing for couple dining.

Apart from the seat, cabin service will be identical to regular Business Class. Business Premier Luxe will be presented as a seat selection option for Business Premier customers to reserve for NZ$210 to NZ$820, based on route. 

Regular Business Premier seats do not have a privacy door— a decision that I’m sure will generate a lot of discussion — opting instead for a small privacy screen that stows into the seat shell. 

Couples travelling together have the option of opening the centre partition, though the seats are still angled away from each other, making conversation somewhat challenging. 

The new seat offers more places to stow your personal items, with a combination unit featuring doored storage space, a headphone hook and reading light, and a storage bin at foot level.

Each Business Premier seat has a 24-inch 4K inflight entertainment screen, with Bluetooth audio connectivity to pair your own headphones.

In-seat power consists of a universal power socket, a USB-A and USB-C port, rated at 60W. There is also a wireless charging pad built into the armrest, which Air New Zealand tells me delivers sufficient power for fast charging. 

Seats convert into full-flat beds 2 metres long. I’m not a fan of herringbone configurations, but I will concede that they offer a better sleep experience because your head is angled away from the aisle, and your feet aren’t cramped into a tiny footwell the way some reverse herringbone seats do. 

Premium Economy Class

The 33 Premium Economy Class seats are manufactured by ZIM Aircraft Seating and belong to the ZIMprivacy PC-02 range, already flying with Swiss and soon to fly with Lufthansa.

Seats are configured in a 2-3-2 layout, spread across five rows. Each seat has an adjustable headrest, privacy wing and ergonomically-sculpted back, with 19 inches of width and 41 inches of legroom.

Interestingly, seats have three-point seatbelts, which you don’t usually see in a Premium Economy cabin. The shoulder strap needs to be fastened for take-off and landing, but otherwise the waist strap is sufficient.

Each seat offers 8 inches of recline, and because of the fixed shell design, they slide down and forward to recline, instead of backwards. This protects the personal space (and laptops!) of the passenger behind, and allows seats to be fully reclined even during mealtimes.

Seats are manually controlled through familiar silver buttons (to date, Japan Airlines is the only carrier that has opted for electrically motorised controls in Premium Economy). Because of the fixed-shell design, there’s a bit of a learning curve involved— to recline your seat, push your bum forwards, not your back backwards. 

Inflight entertainment is provided through 15.6″ HD monitors (no 4K screens here, unlike in Business Class) with Bluetooth audio pairing.

Additional storage space is provided between each pair of seats, big enough for a tablet or smaller laptop.

In-seat power options include a personal universal power socket, a USB-A outlet and a USB-C outlet. It’s worth noting that the USB-C charging port here is only rated at 27W, which is sufficient for fast charging a phone, but insufficient for charging a laptop.

Economy Class

The 215 Economy Class seats are made by HAECO, from the Vector 2 range. Seats are configured in a 3-3-3 layout, with 31 inches of pitch.

These slimline-style seats are popular with airlines because of their weight savings, though that comes at the expense of seat padding, as the photo below shows.

Two further permutations of Economy Class seating are available.

There is an “Economy Plus” product known as Stretch, offered in the first three rows of Economy. This comes with 35 inches of legroom instead of the standard 31 inches.

There’s also Skycouch, first introduced in 2011, and offered in selected rows of seats. This provides a lie-flat option in Economy Class by flipping up the footrests to create a flat surface. Passengers who book this option are provided with extra pillows and blankets to complete the experience.

It’s a novel idea, albeit more suited for children because any adult of average height would find their legs blocking the aisle if they tried to lie flat. The only way of lying down is to bend your knees into a V-shape, which I personally find to be uncomfortable for sleeping.

Inflight entertainment screens measure 13.3 inches, with Bluetooth audio connectivity. These are among the largest screens in Economy Class, though STARLUX also has 13.3 inch screens with 4K resolution.

Below the screen is a thoughtfully-designed amenity stowage compartment for small personal items like a phone or glasses case. You can also use it as a stand for a phone or tablet, should you wish to watch your own media content. 

Air New Zealand does not offer in-seat power sockets in Economy Class. That said, USB-A and USB-C charging is available, and the latter is rated at 60W (higher than the 27W in Premium Economy). This is sufficient for charging a laptop, provided you pack a suitable cable.

The refurbished B787-9s will also feature SkyPantry, a storage area with self-service snacks. 

Lavatories

While this is a relatively minor feature, I wanted to share with you some photos of the lavatories too, which have been decorated with wallpaper featuring the feathers of various New Zealand birds. 

What routes will these aircraft fly?

The retrofitted B787-9s will debut on the Auckland-Brisbane route, but Rarotonga and Vancouver have also been confirmed as a destinations. 

We do know that ultra-long haul routes like Chicago and New York have also been earmarked for service, and Houston, Los Angeles and San Francisco would be other good bets.

Unfortunately, Singapore will not be seeing this aircraft anytime soon, as flights are operated by a higher-capacity B777-300ER.

What about the B777-300ERs?

Air New Zealand’s other long-haul workhorse is the Boeing 777-300ER, of which it has 10. 

Three of these are former Cathay Pacific aircraft on a dry-lease arrangement — meaning Air New Zealand crews operate the flights — and continue to offer Cathay Pacific’s cabin products (the First Class cabin is sold as “Business+”, with Business Class service and an upcharge of NZD590 for selection). Those seats aren’t necessarily market-leading, but are competitive enough.

I can’t say the same about the Business Class seat found on the remaining seven aircraft, which is similar to the current B787-9s. I flew this plane over from Singapore, and while it’s adequate for a daytime flight, the privacy, comfort and technology offered is decades behind the industry. Remember, these seats are based on a platform that was introduced in 2005!

Air New Zealand told me that they do plan to refit the Business Class cabins on these aircraft. However, they don’t have a specific timeline to share, as the focus for now is on the B787-9 refits.

The long-term plan is to replace the B777-300ERs with the B787-10s, though the protracted delivery timeline means that the B777-300ERs are likely to be in service till the end of this decade or even longer.

Conclusion

Air New Zealand’s first retrofitted B787-9 is ready to take to the skies, offering all-new cabin products and a significant enhancement in comfort, privacy and technology. 

The airline aims to refit a further 13 aircraft over the next two years, at an average rate of 45 days per aircraft. This is an aggressive retrofit schedule, and hopefully they can keep to it because until that’s done, there’s always the chance of an equipment swap landing you with one of the older jets.

Those looking forward to even more novel concepts like Skynest will have to wait a little longer though, as it will only feature on the brand new B787-9s arriving from early 2026. I did manage to try out a mockup at Air New Zealand’s HQ, so stay tuned for a piece on that!