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<\/p>\nMailOnline Travel Editor Ted Thornhill flies from London Gatwick to JFK with JetBlue, in the economy ‘Core’ cabin on the way out, and in one of two ‘first-class’ ‘Mint Studio’ suites (pictured) on the way back<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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<\/div>\n<\/div>\nTed’s picture of his berth for the London to JFK leg – seat 15A in the Core ‘Even More Space’ section<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Core blimey\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The Core trip begins at London Gatwick’s North Terminal at midday on a sunny Friday lunchtime, with the A321neo at gate 51 that’ll fly me to JFK looking bijou next to an adjacent Dreamliner.<\/p>\n But inside, despite short-haul looks on the outside, there’s a reassuringly transatlantic vibe thanks to sterling work by JetBlue’s London-based design partner,\u00a0Acumen Design Associates.<\/p>\n It helped overhaul the JetBlue A321 fleet’s cabins, which are fresh and full of funky features, with the updated long-range version of the aircraft boasting a sizeable premium section with direct-aisle-access lie-flat seats.<\/p>\n I walk past the two ‘Mint Studio’ seats at the very front (I’ll be in one of those on the return – 1A), the 22 ‘Mint’ ‘business-class’ seats and through to the economy Core section.<\/p>\n I’m in 15A, billed by JetBlue – the sixth-largest airline in the U.S – as an ‘Even More Space’ Core seat, which means up to seven inches more legroom, early boarding and distinctive orange-and-black headrests.<\/p>\n Spoiler alert \u2013 JetBlue has transatlantic economy nailed.<\/p>\n There’s something alluringly motorsport about the seats and I love how you can bend the padded headrests to form ‘ears’ you can lean your head against while sleeping.<\/p>\n The cushioning, meanwhile, is supportive and I’ll distribute a thumbs up, too, for the backpack-style stowage attached to the back of the seat in front, which has a regular pouch for magazines and the safety cards and a separate holder for drinks bottles.<\/p>\n JetBlue uses state-of-the-art Airbus A321neo long-range aircraft (pictured) for its transatlantic services<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n In addition, there’s a plug socket and cable port I plug my phone into.<\/p>\n Obviously, the priority is to fire-up WhatsApp and distribute pictures of my journey while in flight mode to friends and loved ones while they’re toiling at work, so I log onto the JetBlue WiFi, which is free and works seamlessly coast to coast.<\/p>\n Each passenger gets a nice blanket and reuseable silicone amenity kit containing lip balm and moisturising lotion by ‘Anatomicals’, a mint and a pair of socks – and every economy seat has a nifty touch-sensitive entertainment screen that entertains gate to gate (well, in theory, the whole system glitches and doesn’t work properly until it’s reset when we hit cruising altitude).<\/p>\n ‘There’s a reassuringly transatlantic vibe [on the A321neo] thanks to sterling work by JetBlue’s London-based design partner, Acumen Design Associates,’ writes Ted. Above is a publicity picture of the JetBlue A321neo Core cabin<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Ted settles in for the JFK leg with his complimentary blanket<\/p>\n<\/div>\n They’re 10 inches, which is big enough to enjoy movies on, have a simple even-your-granny-could-work-it-out menu system and, if leaning forwards to press the screen is too much bother, you can sync your smartphone to the system and use the device as the controller.<\/p>\n Thoughtfully, the movie options include two-hour-plus films ‘for long flights’ and sub-two-hour films ‘for short flights’.<\/p>\n I watch Dune and the new Ghostbusters using my own in-ear Sony headphones as the freebies on the plane aren’t great, but that’s standard in any economy cabin.<\/p>\n Hungry for the intel on the food? It’s produced in partnership with hipster chain Dig, which runs farm-sourced restaurants on the east coast of the U.S, and interestingly, here, the ordering system is an extra talking point \u2013 it’s ingenious. You build your meal onboard using on-screen menus and the crew deliver it without further ado.<\/p>\n I opt for hot honey chicken with two sides of cheesy cauliflower and sheet tray carrots.<\/p>\n I’ll stick my neck out and say it’s the best economy plane meal I’ve ever had \u2013 comforting, rustic, moreishly flavoursome. Partly thanks to divine sauces.<\/p>\n Ted’s\u00a0hot honey chicken with cheesy cauliflower and sheet tray carrots by hipster chain Dig, which he declares is the best economy plane meal he’s ever had. He’s also a fan of the ordering system, which involves building the meal via the entertainment screen<\/p>\n<\/div>\n On the left is the\u00a0reuseable silicone amenity kit that JetBlue Core passengers receive, and the freebie headphones. On the right is the whopper of a pretzel served before the plane lands at JFK<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Every economy seat on transatlantic JetBlue services has a 10-inch entertainment screen – big enough to enjoy movies on and they have a simple ‘even-your-granny-could-work-it-out menu system’, says Ted<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The Even More Space seats come with up with seven extra inches of leg space. Ted has even more thanks to an empty seat next to him (left). Each Core seat has a socket for phones and laptops (right)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The fodder is so pleasing I half wonder whether the crew has pilfered it from business class.<\/p>\n My wine, too – a creamy Pinot Grigio from Washington State \u2013 is also most uneconomy-like.<\/p>\n Before landing we’re served a pretzel so big it should be classed as ‘weaponised’, but there’s a dessert desertion – little ice creams had been on the cards, but they ran out, I’m told. I grab a bag of cookies from the self-service pantry at the back to compensate.<\/p>\n Service throughout is polite, perky and purposeful and I disembark feeling like a JetBlue convert.<\/p>\n To put it in soccer terms, the carrier is 3-0 up at halftime (would that be 60-0 up in basketball?), with a couple of yellow cards for the glitches and lack of dessert.<\/p>\n After a couple of nights at the\u00a0Baccarat\u00a0and activities that include a few laps of Central Park, a stroll around\u00a0MOMA, inventive cocktails at\u00a0Undercote\u00a0(the super subterranean bar at Michelin-starred Korean steakhouse Cote), and an amazing meal at\u00a0Frevo, a Greenwich Village restaurant you enter by stepping through a door disguised as a painting in an art gallery, it’s time to put JetBlue’s best seat to the test \u2013 Mint Studio.<\/p>\n THE FIRST CLASS MINT STUDIO EXPERIENCE\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n It’s an enclave frankly so splendid \u2013 like a mini apartment, or apart-mint, as JetBlue puts it \u2013 that I look around for someone to high-five when I sit down.<\/p>\n Make no mistake, Mint Studio is remarkable – JetBlue and Acumen have pulled out all the stops, then apparently whittled some more, and pulled those out too.<\/p>\n Ted snaps this picture as he steps into his Mint Studio suite for the return leg to London Gatwick<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Ted sips fizz part-way through his freebie inspection<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Legroom? Redundant. This berth is so big it’s practically a slice of real estate, which at 22.7 square feet is almost big enough to accommodate a small family. And there are so many bells and whistles that it takes me around 20 minutes to investigate them all.<\/p>\n After delivering a refreshing glass of fizz before we taxi to the runway, David \u2013 one of a trio of superstar crew looking after me \u2013 helpfully talks me through some of the features.<\/p>\n There’s a wireless charging device next to a storage compartment containing a bottle of water that illuminates when you open the lid, a private closet with vanity mirror, two sockets with cable ports, and a slide-out drawer for laptops.<\/p>\n Mint Studio is so big it’s practically a slice of real estate, which at 22.7 square feet is almost big enough to accommodate a small family (publicity shot above)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n ‘The seat would be comfortable for far longer journeys than New York to London,’ declares Ted<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The Mint Studio elbowside seat control panel<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The vibe is upscale residential \u2013 there’s a guest seat to my left (though the guest seat tray table is not functioning), a privacy door, two wall lamps, two windows and a gargantuan entertainment screen that folds out from the wall and tilts to the optimum angle. At 22 inches (five inches bigger than the business-class Mint screens), JetBlue claims it’s the biggest of any U.S airline.<\/p>\n Movies and TV shows on this are all the more enjoyable thanks to a pair of excellent hi-fi-grade Master & Dynamic MH40 noise-isolating headphones (not for keeping, sadly).<\/p>\n The seat, meanwhile, would be comfortable for far longer journeys than New York to London, thanks to deluxe vegan-leather upholstery,\u00a0adaptive foam cushioning by Tuft and Needle and manoeuvrability via an elbowside control panel, which can be used to move it from upright to lie-flat and any number of positions in between.<\/p>\n On top of all this, there’s a seemingly endless number of freebies. There’s an amenity kit by e-commerce wellness store Wanderfuel containing Voesh hand and body cream, Lumion ‘Miracle Mist’ (with Dead Sea salt) and an oversized coconut oil body wipe by Busy Co that’s billed as a substitute for a shower.<\/p>\n In the vanity unit I discover a pair of slippers and another amenity kit containing items that include lip balm, hand lotion and a stain remover pen.<\/p>\n Ear we go: Master & Dynamic MH40 noise-isolating headphones are distributed to Mint passengers (Ted pictured left putting them to the test). On the right, Ted’s seat in leg-stretching mode<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Plus, there’s another little kit with an eye mask, earplugs and a toothbrush and toothpaste inside.<\/p>\n At this point I give myself a freebie-inspection intermission and sip some more bubbles.<\/p>\n The next task is to unzip the ‘snooze kit’. Inside this is a luxurious blanket and memory-foam pillow by those dream weavers at Tuft & Needle.<\/p>\n Time for a movie.<\/p>\n No, wait, the crew are offering me a pair of trendy black tracksuit-style Mint Studio pyjamas.<\/p>\n These, I’m told, I can keep.<\/p>\n After one last sweep for freebies, I peruse the dinner menu.<\/p>\n![\"JetBlue](\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2022\/03\/25\/20\/55811925-10638961-image-a-31_1648241614137.jpg\")
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