LATAM’s New Business Class Suites With Doors For Boeing 787 Fleet

Over the past several years, LATAM has been installing a new business class product on its long haul aircraft. The airline hasn’t even finished this installation, but has just introduced yet another new business class seat. We first learned about these plans last year, but the first aircraft with these interiors is now in service.

Basics of LATAM’s new business class suites

LATAM is modernizing the business class product on much of its Boeing 787 fleet. Specifically, the airline is installing business class suites with doors on 24 of its Dreamliner aircraft, including 10 787-8s and 14 787-9s. In total, the airline is spending $360 million on retrofitting its 787s, and that also includes investing in the interiors of the economy cabin.

LATAM is installing the Recaro R7 seat (formerly marketed as the CL6720 seat), featuring direct aisle access and privacy doors at every seat. This is the same product you’ll find on Air China’s new Airbus A350s, and also on Iberia’s new Airbus A350s. LATAM is also the first airline in South America to have doors at business class seats.

Seat features include an 18″ high definition monitor, USB-A and USB-C charging, a dedicated shoe compartment, and ample storage space.

The airline is partnering with PriestmanGoode on the design of the seat, noting that it “incorporates South American elements,” like “granite tables inspired by the Andes, interior contours evoking Brazil’s sand dunes, and copper accents that pay homage to the region’s heritage.”

Up until this point, LATAM had 30 business class seats on both 787-8s and 787-9s. Once reconfigured, the 787-8s will have just 20 business class seats (as the size of the cabin is being reduced, and limited to the space between doors one and two), while the 787-9s will continue to have 30 business class seats. I’m disappointed to see the reduction in the size of business class on the 787-8s, since that won’t be great in terms of fares, upgrades, and award availability.

LATAM’s new business class suites enter service

The first Boeing 787-8 with new interiors is now flying, and has entered service as of April 26, 2025. Impressively, we’ll see a total of three reconfigured jets in service in the coming days, with the next two entering service on May 3 and May 6, 2025.

The expectation is that it will take one to two months to reconfigure each jet, but in some cases, two planes will be reconfigured at once. So with the current timeline, the airline plans to complete this project in the second half of 2026. First we’re going to see several 787-8s reconfigured, and then 787-9s should get new cabins starting later in 2025.

The reconfigured 787s are all based in Santiago (SCL), and will initially fly to Bogota (BOG), Mexico City (MEX), and Miami (MIA), before then flying to Easter Island (IPC), Bogota (BOG), Madrid (MAD), New York (JFK), and Los Angeles (LAX).

There are no plans for LATAM’s Boeing 767s and Boeing 777s to get these new seats. In fairness, they all feature LATAM’s current new business class product, while a majority of Boeing 787s don’t have that cabin.

This is an exciting development!

Honestly, LATAM’s current new business class product is solid. What has been frustrating is that as of now, over half of LATAM’s Boeing 787s don’t have that product. Instead, they have an old cabin in a 2-2-2 configuration. Given that 787s are used for some of LATAM’s most premium routes, this was a weak point of the LATAM experience.

So I’m excited to see LATAM finally investing more in these jets. In particular, none of the carrier’s 787-8s feature the new cabins, so those are most in need of a refresh — I like that those planes are being prioritized.

I do find it interesting that “only” 24 Dreamliners will be getting the new cabins. It seems to me like those 787s that already had the recent new product installed won’t get the newest seats. That’s fair enough, since it still means LATAM will only have two business class products once this project is complete. That’s better than a lot of other airlines, frankly.

Bottom line

LATAM has introduced yet another new business class product, as the airline is installing the Recaro R7 business class suite on Dreamliners. This is an excellent business class seat with doors. While I’m happy to see this incremental improvement over the carrier’s previous new business class, what’s most exciting is that more 787s are finally getting a refresh.

What do you make of LATAM’s new business class suites with doors?