· · ·

The luxury of being able to smoke at 40,000 feet

SMINTairI’m not a big fan of smoking at all (never tried it, and never will!) but an article in the International Herald Tribune  entitled ‘Frequent Traveler: Lighting up in luxury may soon be latest in niche flying’ recently caught my eye.   It provides information on SMINTair, an airline for those that can’t kick the habit, which is anticipated to launch in March 2008. From the article:
…there’s more to luxury in the air than being allowed to smoke. SMINTair promises to take passengers back to the glory days of air travel by providing elegant meals and to “bring back the exclusivity of flying in the 1960s”. There is advanced air-conditioning, which, it is claimed, will provide fresh air that is “better by far” than that of a nonsmoking cabin. And, yes, cigars and pipes will be allowed.
Hmmmm… I can’t say I’m too convinced. Attempts at similar airlines in the US (Smokers Express and the members-only airline of the Great American Smokers’ Club) both failed, so it’ll be interesting to see if SMINTair will be any different. Would YOU use such a service?

Paul Johnson

Paul Johnson is Editor of A Luxury Travel Blog and has worked in the travel industry for more than 30 years. He is Winner of the Innovations in Travel ‘Best Travel Influencer’ Award from WIRED magazine. In addition to other awards, the blog has also been voted “one of the world’s best travel blogs” and “best for luxury” by The Daily Telegraph.

Did you enjoy this article?

Receive similar content direct to your inbox.

One Comment

  1. I heard about SMINTair a few months back, and I thought that it was an “OK” segment of the airline business to enter. Although, I see it only working with regional jet sized aircraft, and only flying a few days a week.
    The airline business is hard enough, and I think this airline will be extinguished pretty quickly.

Comments are closed.