Singapore Airlines is known for being one of the airlines for premium travel. They usually make sure their rules are fair for passengers. Recently they made a change that affects how business class seats are chosen. They didn't tell anyone.

• A new rule has been applied to Singapore Airlines routes.
• Now some business class passengers can choose seats from the cabin but others can't.

The change happened without any announcement. There's no page that shows the fare differences and they don't tell you about it when you book. Passengers are finding out about it on their own usually when its too late.

The business class cabin is now divided based on status and fare type. Passengers who are in these groups can choose any seat:

• PPS Club members. They have to spend a lot on qualifying fares to get to this level
• Those who bought Flexible or Standard business class fares. These fares are more expensive

If you're not in those groups you're limited to choosing seats in the back part of the business class cabin. This includes passengers who bought discounted Business Lite fares, used award tickets or booked classes. The front seats are usually better. They can help you get off the plane faster be closer to the food and drinks have privacy or be, in a quieter area. For flights these things matter.

The Transparency Problem

I find it really annoying that Singapore Airlines made this change. What is more annoying is how they are telling us about it. They are not really telling us about it. If you go to the Singapore Airlines website you will not see anything that says seat selection is not the same for all tickets. The page where you compare the kinds of tickets like Business Lite, Standard and Flexible does not say anything about seat selection.

This means that someone who is booking a business class ticket and already spending a lot of money might not know that they cannot sit in the front of the plane until they are actually booking their ticket. If you do a booking you can see that some seats are blocked but if you are not looking for it you might miss it.

This is also a problem for people who are using their miles to book a Singapore Airlines business class seat. Using miles to book a business class seat is a deal and it is disappointing if you get to the part where you pick your seat and you cannot sit where you want. You do not know about this until you are actually picking your seat. That is not fair.

The One Good Thing to Note

I have to say that Singapore Airlines is doing one thing right. They do not charge you extra to pick your seat in business class. You do not have to pay money to sit in a certain seat.

This might seem like a thing but a lot of airlines are now charging you extra to pick your seat. It is annoying to pay a lot of money for a ticket and have to pay again to sit where you want. Singapore Airlines is not doing this. That is good.

My concern is that this new seat rule is a step towards charging us extra to pick our seat. If they are saying that some people get to pick seats it is not hard to imagine that they will start charging us for those seats. I hope Singapore Airlines is not going to do this. They are not being very clear, about what they are doing so it is hard to trust them.

How This Compares to What Other Airlines Are Doing

Singapore Airlines is not the airline that uses seat selection as a way to reward loyal customers and people who pay more for their tickets. Many airlines do this now they save the seats for their best customers and the people who pay the most money. These good seats are usually near the exit or near the front of the plane.

What is different about Singapore Airlines is that they are a good airline with a great reputation but they made these changes without telling people. This is a problem for people who used their points to buy a business class ticket because they thought they would get to choose any seat they wanted.

For people who choose Singapore Airlines because they want to fly business class, where they sit is a part of why they choose this airline. If they are told they have to sit at the back of the plane it does not feel like they got what they paid for.

What Travelers Should Do Now

If you are going to fly on Singapore Airlines business class there are a few things you should do. You should check the seat map to see where you will sit even if you are not flying for a while.

If you have a ticket or you used points to buy your ticket and you cannot sit near the front of the plane it is good to know this now. If you are planning a trip and you want to sit in a seat you should think about how much your ticket costs.

A expensive ticket will give you more choices for where you sit on the plane, which might be important to you depending on the plane and where you are going. You can pay for a Standard or Flexible fare. This will let you choose any seat, on the plane.

The Bottom Line

Singapore Airlines has made a change to its business class seats that most people will not find out about from the airline. They are now keeping the part of the plane for special members of the PPS Club and people who paid more for their tickets. This means people who got tickets or used awards will have to sit towards the back. The problem is that Singapore Airlines is not telling people about this change and that is not fair. People should know what they are getting before they book their flight.

The good thing is that Singapore Airlines still does not charge people to pick their seats, which's better, than some other airlines. We will have to wait and see if this changes. For now Singapore Airlines business class passengers need to know the rules so their flight is as good as they expect from Singapore Airlines. Singapore Airlines business class is supposed to be very good so people should know what to expect from Singapore Airlines.