All-Luxury Airline... for Smokers

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed)
Jun 28th 2006 at 6:02PM

Smintair is a new luxury airline concept that is being developed by a German entrepreneur. The name is derived from a longer title: Smoker's International Airlines.

On board, not only will smoking be permitted, but the airline promises to "bring back the exclusivity in flying encountered in the 1960s." The plan is to offer two jets, Boeing 747s, and round-trip service from Dusseldorf to Tokyo. There will only be 138 seats on each plane (compared to 347 on a normal commercial 747) and they will not offer coach or economy seating. Business class seats will have 70" of legroom (compared to the standard 55") and First Class will have 80" of leg room.

Alexander Schoppmann, the founder of Smintair, says that the "no smoking" policy of airlines was originally implemented so that companies could cut back on air conditioning systems; Schoppmann says that his airline will restore systems that can handle the smoking without problem. He is confident that fliers will be willing to pay for the comfort and services his airline will offer.

On a final note, Smintair does state on its employment application that "Allergics against tobacco smoke or militant anti-smokers are asked to not apply."

Tags: airline, fly, flying, german, germany, luxury, old fashioned, smintair, smoker's international airlines, smokers, smoking, travel

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

luxury affair Jun 29th 2006 12:53AM

this seems like a really lame idea

http://luxuryaffair.com

Charles Thomas Jun 29th 2006 1:29AM

When can you bring this concept to America and serve the most overtaxed minority group in the country?

Sharon Jun 29th 2006 6:14AM

I think this is a bad business idea. I know heavy smokers who prefer even to have their food in non smoking areas. who in their right mind would want to sit in a plane with constant fumes. Even heavy smokers will obviously hate it. What an odd unique selling point.

Greg Jul 1st 2006 6:55PM

I believe he intends not to recycle air conditioned air, as most airlines do to save money, but to condition outside air a single time and exhaust it all with the smoke. More fuel will be used. And if the ventilation is done correctly it may be better than breathing recycled, virus laden, people air for ten hours. I agree on the dinner thing. Don't like smoking at dinner. Maybe they can remedy that with some creativity.