Lie-flat seats on narrowbodies, wide-open Oman Air First Class awards, and Qatar's refreshed Diptyque kits

Hey {{first name | reader}},

Happy Friday! Hope you had a great Christmas. Three quick aviation + points hits for you today:

Saudia just shared details of what to expect on its upcoming Airbus A321XLR, and the headline is simple: fully flat beds on a single-aisle jet. They're planning Thompson's VantageSOLO seats, with direct aisle access and a fully flat bed – on an aircraft that's basically the "route opener" of the decade.

Thai Airways is doing something similar on the narrowbody side too: they're rolling out A321neos with flat-bed business class, using the Thompson Vantage platform (staggered seating with a mix of 1 - 1 "throne" seats and paired seats), and a total of 16 business class seats on the aircraft.

And this is the trend I've been watching: airlines are realizing that if a plane can fly long enough, you need a real premium seat – even if it's a single aisle.

The A321XLR is built for long-distance missions: Airbus markets it at up to 4,700 nautical miles and up to ~11 hours of flight time.

That's not "cute little two-hour hop" territory. That's real long-haul.

It's also why we're seeing more lie-flats show up on narrowbodies: if you can fly 7 – 11 hours on a single-aisle, economy is one thing… but premium passengers want a bed.

This is the nerdy fun part. Yesterday I saw a post where someone calculated what routes the A321XLR could theoretically cover from Argentina, and it made my brain go into full "what if" mode.

One route mentioned was COR – PPT (Córdoba to Tahiti). Will that ever happen? Almost certainly never 😂 – but I love that it's even within range to talk about it. And funny enough it seems more realistic with a smaller plane instead of a widebody!

And on the more realistic side: the idea that a narrowbody can connect the southernmost part of the continent to much of the US and even Canada is wild. It's a reminder that aircraft range is quietly changing what's "possible," and airlines are going to keep testing new point-to-point routes as these planes roll in.

I find this trend really amazing. This means that airlines can now cover long routes with less demand, without having to go all in on the route. These aircraft will let secondary cities have long-haul flights, democratizing flying, and not having to go through big hubs. I just love this trend and I think this is the most important part.

If you like rare redemptions, this one is fun.

Right now there's wide-open First Class award availability on Oman Air between Bangkok (BKK) and Muscat (MCT), and you can book it using Air Canada Aeroplan.

Oman Air offers a very good First Class service on board: food is great and seats are amazing, with individual suites. On the ground there is not really a distinction for passengers flying first class, other than the First Class lounge, but at this price point, I won't complain. I've never visited Oman Air's First Class lounge yet, but they say it is amazing – I've heard really good things about it.

Because this route is intercontinental and falls in the 2,501 – 5,000 mile band, Aeroplan's partner chart prices First Class at 80,000 points one-way.

If you value Aeroplan at 13 USD per 1000 point, that's roughly $1,000 in "points value" for a First Class seat – and that's exactly the kind of redemption that becomes possible once you understand how these charts work (yep, this is a core concept inside Points Master).

First Class awards are usually:

But here? I'm seeing a lot of flights with 4 seats, and I even spotted a couple with as many as 7. That's unusual for First.

How to search it: go to Aeroplan's site, search BKK – MCT, and make sure you're filtering for First. (If you don't see it at first, try toggling dates – the availability is "clustered," not evenly spread.)

Qatar refreshed their Diptyque amenity kits with a new design + updated contents. If you've flown Qatar business class, you already know these kits are part of what makes the experience feel "premium" before you even take off.

We can definitely say that Qatar offers some of the most premium business class amenity kits in the industry, and their collaboration with a high-end brand like Diptyque really stands out. 

According to the details shared, the kits include Diptyque skincare items (like lip balm, body lotion, face cream) and fragrance options depending on the kit.

And yes… the face mist is still my favorite part.

Confession: I basically never use face mist in normal life. But when I'm on Qatar? I turn into a different person. I'll go to the bathroom and hit that face mist multiple times like it's a performance-enhancing beverage for long-haul flying.

Do I look the same afterward? Probably. Do I feel 37% more refreshed? Absolutely. And hey, I really like these new kit designs. 

That's it for today. Enjoy the weekend, and I'll see you Monday with more deals, routes, and strategies.

Catch you in the clouds,

Tomi