Continental Airlines says all of its Boeing 777 long-haul international flights now feature new 'BusinessFirst' class flat-bed seats.

"These seats are highly popular with customers from all over the world, and we will begin installing them on the rest of our widebody fleet beginning next year," says Continental president and chief revenue officer Jim Compton.

The B/E Aerospace-manufactured flat-bed seat reclines 180 degrees and provides 6ft, 6in of sleeping space in the fully extended position on the 777. Laptop power, headset and USB plugs are tucked above the customer's shoulder. Apple iPod connectivity, via Panasonic Avionics in-flight entertainment systems, allows customers to view their personal videos and enjoy their music while their iPods are charging.

The flat-bed seats made their operational debut in November 2009 and are also being installed on Continental's fleet of Boeing 757-200 aircraft.

Continental says it will begin retrofitting substantially all of its Boeing 767 aircraft with BusinessFirst flat-bed seats in 2011.

The carrier currently operates the 777-200 on international routes between its New York Newark hub and Beijing, Delhi, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, London Heathrow, Mumbai, Shanghai, Tel Aviv and Tokyo, and between its Houston hub and Heathrow and Tokyo.

Source: Air Transport Intelligence news