After a hectic 60-hour trip to Chicago for my regular day job, it was time to make the slog back across the Atlantic late of a Thursday evening, and I was delighted to be doing so in the rarefied air of Aer Lingus’ Business Class cabin.

I arrived to Chicago O’Hare far earlier than required, having first of all reached the end of the work day, and secondly having heard that the blue line was down due to an earlier incident.

The Aer Lingus check-in area at the end of the terminal was practically empty when I arrived, and I was checked in immediately at the Business Class / AerClub counter, and provided very detailed instructions on reaching the American Airlines Flagship Lounge, Aer Lingus’ chosen venue for their premium passengers to while away the pre-flight hours.

Through the ever-enjoyable TSA experience, which offers no separate line for premium cabin or status passengers but was prompt nonetheless, and I quickly made my way to the lounge for a few post-work pre-departure beverages (more to come on this lounge in a separate review, but it was absolutely slammed).

Prior to the flight, I sauntered up to the gate literally just at the same moment business class passengers were called and so, not wanting to run the risk of running into any of my several colleagues on the same flight and exhaust the very last of my social skills, I practically ran forward, becoming the first person to board and answering the question I’ve wondered myself for years – ‘why are some people just so desperate to be first onto a plane?’. They don’t want to socialise.

Aer Lingus’ Business Class cabin is now becoming ‘old’ in comparison to the non-stop evolution of business class seating since its introduction, but what is lost in terms of modernity is generally made up for in terms of cleanliness, comfort and crew.

Seating is arranged in a slightly unusual alternating 1-2-2/1-2-1 layout. There’s a clear ‘best’ seat if you’re a solo traveller, which is the far right single seat; however the left-hand side solo seats (featured in imagery from the flight, on this page) also offer solid privacy and space.

For couples, the middle two-seaters offer the most space, with a little storage locker on alternating sides by row; while the two-seaters on the right-hand side offer slightly less width space and require someone to climb over the other passenger to get out at night, but do of course have window seat views, and who doesn’t want that?

For this flight, I was seated in 5D, one of the middle two-seaters on the left-hand side. On boarding, a pillow, blanket and amenity kit including moisturiser and lip balm from Jo Browne, had all been left at my seat area.

After being seated, and as I realised nobody else from my company would be sat near me, a very welcome pre-departure beverage was offered and I went for a nice glass of water…and of course a Champagne.

The menu for the evening was thoughtfully curated with a full meal service for those who wanted it, and then an express tray service for those who just wanted to get straight to sleep.

To be honest, after several drinks and what I could make of a meal in the lounge, and the single glass of champagne on-board, I wish I could say I was up for a hearty meal but no, I quickly reclined my seat for a nap after take-off, and woke only briefly to see several passengers around me having dinner, before reclining the seat fully and going back to sleep.

Overall, I can mostly only base this flight on sleep quality – and it was excellent, as I woke with about 90 minutes remaining to Dublin, just enough time to freshen up in the bathroom, skip breakfast as it seemed to lack the bacon roll that I had been looking forward to, and instead enjoy a coffee and an orange juice.

Before long, we were on approach to Dublin and then quickly down on the ground taxiing to our stand at Terminal 2.

Overall, while this was a flight I definitely spent less time enjoying all the features of, after several days of focus, work and meeting new colleagues, it had everything I needed, which was an excellent sleep and a punctual arrival back home to Dublin.