LATAM Advances Premium Experience with New Cabins, Wi-Fi, and A321XLR Fleet Expansion
Not only is LATAM Airlines Group the largest airline group in South America, but it has also been making a number of investments aimed at positioning itself as a contender to become one of the world's best. The Latin American carrier has ordered new aircraft to cover the different market segments in which it operates, from A321XLRs to complement its existing widebody fleet to Embraer E195s aimed at boosting connectivity within the region. But the key to these ambitions is also a sweeping overhaul of the passenger experience. This spans from new premium cabins and the roll out of Wi-Fi connectivity across the long-haul fleet, and to an updated onboard catering and service concept, the launch of new amenity kits and a revamped network of LATAM lounges at all its main hubs. To learn more about what LATAM Airlines has in store, AeroTime sat down with the man who is overseeing this transformation, Paulo Miranda, Group Executive Vice President, Chief Experience Brand and Customer Officer at LATAM, on the sidelines of the 82nd IATA Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Rio de Janeiro, an event that was hosted by LATAM. "We are an airline based in South America, but we play at a global level, so we're making several investments to keep improving customer experience," he said. "For example, we're moving forward with all the changes to our Premium Business cabins. "We're modernizing the cabin with suites, where we have the 1-2-1 configuration and all passengers have aisle access," Miranda said, referring to the ongoing retrofit of the airline's long-haul business class cabin, a multi-year project that began in 2019/20. When it comes to cabin revamp, the next big project at LATAM is the launch of a new Premium Economy product, which will be called "Premium Comfort". "We're going to implement an intermediate cabin between business and economy, which comes with seats that also have more space, and a slightly different configuration," he said. "We also keep making regular renovations on our aircraft interiors. On top of this, we have the Wi-Fi investment. On single-aisle aircraft we already have about 95% installed, and we're now in the process of installing Wi-Fi on the third widebody aircraft." "The vision, obviously, is to cover the whole fleet," he added. "This is something that should be finished by the end of 2027." Many major airlines have opted for SpaceX's Starlink system, which is based entirely on a constellation of low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites. However, LATAM Airlines announced ViaSat as its partner for the carrier's US$60 million project, which will see its entire long-haul fleet of 60 aircraft fitted with satellite-based connectivity. The first of these internet-fitted aircraft entered service in April 2026. "I think these are obviously technologies that have something different from one another, but I believe the vision for the future of connectivity ultimately involves multi-orbit connections," Miranda said. "It won't be all LEO or all GEO [Geostationary Orbit, when a satellite remains at the same spot relative to the Earth – ed. note], there will be some kind of combination because there are areas where one can optimize the network better and that's a bit the direction we're looking at continuing in." Placing choice at the center The aim of these investments is to consolidate LATAM's role as the carrier of reference in much of South America and successfully defend its share. "We carry approximately 40% of all the passengers who travel within the region and when you look at South America relative to the [rest of the] world, I think we're at between 20 to 30% of all the people who come to the region," Miranda said. "Now, within our value proposition we have something very specific that we call "Choice", which means that you choose how you want to fly. So, in markets where we face competition from low-cost airlines, customers can choose a simpler fare, one with no checked bag, no extras, if that suits them," he continued. "But on that same route we also offer customers who want a more differentiated product what we call Premium Economy in South America, but it's very similar to European Business-class fares, with the first rows of the aircraft having the middle seat blocked and more space." Miranda is also keenly awaiting the arrival of the 13 A321XLRs LATAM ordered from Airbus at the 2022 Farnborough International Airshow. These long-range narrowbody aircraft open up many possibilities for LATAM when tapping new international markets. LATAM's A321XLRs were initially earmarked to operate from Lima (LIM), Perú, but after the introduction of air connectivity taxes by the Peruvian government, the airline's CEO, Roberto Alvo, suggested they may be deployed elsewhere. During a 2025 Executive Spotlight interview with AeroTime, Alvo referred to the potential of the A321XLR to develop links to Europe and the US from Brazilian cities such as Brasilia and Fortaleza. "The big change that's coming for us when it comes to narrowbody aircraft is the arrival of the A321XLR in 2027," Miranda said. "Our vision with this aircraft is that it will fly longer routes, over eight hours or so. So, we're configuring with two-classes and Premium Business seats [LATAM's business class suites – ed. note], 12 lie-flat seats." Another new type of aircraft soon to be inducted into service by LATAM is the Embraer E195. The airline group ordered up to 74 of the aircraft type in September 2025, the first of which AeroTime saw being readied for delivery during a trip to the Brazilian manufacturer's plant in Sao José dos Campos in June 2026. "These will fly first and primarily within Brazil. We're looking at it as an opportunity for new markets in Brazil, in smaller cities, and also to complement some routes we already have," Miranda stated, adding that the aircraft will feature a single cabin, with some seats offering extra space. "We'll have what we're going to call Premium Economy [not to be confused with 'Premium Comfort', the premium economy product LATAM is planning to offer on long-haul flights as an intermediate class between business and economy – ed. note] because we'll have a differentiated space in the first rows, but that's it." Investing in the soft product Besides the investment in new aircraft and cabins, LATAM has also conducted a thorough revamp of other elements of its business class experience. "We had a launch on December 1, 2025, where we relaunched everything related to the business cabin on all of our international flights," Miranda said. "There's a whole story behind it. We drew a lot of inspiration from the region itself, from its colors, themes, with variations throughout." Miranda then detailed the different elements of the service that have been upgraded. "We structured our catering service into three steps, so that the customer can really enjoy it – appetizer, main, dessert – and we also changed the blankets, the pillows, and the amenity kits, which are also inspired by the region," he said. "We wanted everyone to take a little piece of it with them after our journey with us. The feedback from customers has been really good. They are loving it." Next. Miranda delved further into the service novelties LATAM has recently introduced. "One thing we have done that I love is that we have had several partnerships with chefs from the region to design the meals," he said. "We chose female chefs who are very talented but not yet famous because we wanted to create space within our environment for them to keep developing. About 70–80% of the world's famous chefs are men, so it's an opportunity to give space and exposure to very talented people." Miranda also takes pride in the airline's inflight entertainment (IFE) platform, called "LATAM Play", which offers access to hundreds of audiovisual productions. He explained: "We have by far the best IFE platform in the region, and [it is] very comparable to the best in global aviation." This platform is available on seatback