More fliers opting for more room with premium economy

— -- Hungry for new revenue streams, airlines are installing premium-economy seats for passengers who want to buy more legroom by trading up or save money by trading down from other cabin classes.

Several airlines, mostly foreign, have reconfigured their long-haul aircraft in recent months to offer seats that are 5 inches to 8 inches longer in pitch — the distance between the seat back to the seat behind — and about 1 inch to 4 inches wider than coach seats. Some airlines also provide better food, wine, noise-canceling headphones and priority boarding.

The fee to upgrade to premium economy can range from $30 to $2,000 round trip, depending on the distance and services. But seats are also hundreds or thousands of dollars cheaper than flying in business or first class.

For example, the cheapest economy base fare for a February New York-London flight on British Airways costs $170 round trip, not including fees and taxes. A premium-class ticket is $619, while the cheapest business-class fare costs $2,178.

Consumer demand is relatively robust, industry executives say, as business travelers increasingly cut down on first- or business-class trips that can cost more than $10,000. They're also targeted at wealthy leisure travelers who are paying on their own to upgrade from economy without using miles.

"Airlines are dealing with customers who aren't interested in paying for business class, (as) employers are asking employees to save money," says Matt Daimler, founder of SeatGuru.com, a site that advises consumers on airline seats.

JetBlue expects to generate about $40 million of revenue by charging extra for several rows of seats in the front that have 5 more inches of legroom.

United says its sales of premium-economy seats — previously given away as a perk only to frequent fliers — have grown each year since the carrier started selling them to all passengers three years ago.