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Cathay Pacific will reinstate first class on selected long-range Boeing 777 services this year.

The HK flag-carrier previously opted to remove the first class cabin from some Boeing 777-300ER aircraft in order to accommodate its all-new Premium Economy service, which will debut on March 1st.

“We can confirm that the aircraft to be deployed on our Toronto service starting March 2012 will consist (only) of Business Class, Premium Economy and Economy Class” a spokeswoman for the airline told Australian Business Traveller late last year.

However, speaking in Seattle at the launch of Cathay Pacific's first Beoing 777 fitted with premium economy, the airline's Chief Operating  Officer Ivan Chu told Australian Business Traveller that a a four-class Boeing 777 with first, business, premium economy and economy would be introduced to service New York "and in time, Los Angeles, London and Chicago and sometimes Tokyo.”

The new aircraft will contain six ‘mini-suites’ in the small but swish first class cabin, 53 seats in business class, 34 in premium economy and 182 of the revised economy seats.