Condor wowed us recently with a bold new brand image. Some of you might have already seen these bold stripey aircraft in the skies, which are certainly standing out on airport aprons. In fact, the intended purpose to generate interest and awareness of the brand is working, with many images popping up on social media, acting as free below-the-line marketing, helping an airline with limited resources at its disposal.
Yesterday saw the grand reveal of the airline’s interiors, which adds a deeper complexity to the livery design, injecting a surprising level of substance and style to the airline. Instead of opting for a bright, summery interior, which probably most of us were expecting, there’s something that’s ‘smart leisure’ about the brand with swathes of navy and brushed copper, and naturally stripes, albeit in a paired back, playful approach. (If there was just one thing we wish had been adopted, it would be consistency in the bold stripe direction, with virtually every surface adopting vertical stripes except for the sidewalls of the business class seats and economy cushions – so so close!)
The airline’s new A330neos will take off in a three-class configuration: A total of 310 seats will be available, 30 for Business Class, 64 for ‘Premium Economy Class’ (read economy comfort) and 216 for Economy Class. Guests will experience the new cabin for the first time in autumn 2022, when approximately one Airbus A330neo will join the fleet per month, replacing the current Boeing 767 long-haul fleet. The Condor A330neo will then take off on long-haul routes in winter 2022. The first destinations include the Dominican Republic, Mexico and Seattle, USA.
“With the new cabin design, we are focusing on modern elegance and the colour-set creates a clear reference to our new brand identity. Our guests’ holiday begins with boarding and continues with the distinctive Condor product and first-class service,” says Ralf Teckentrup, CEO of Condor. “With that, our well-established product is complemented by an unprecedented, coherent interior design, with the highest level of comfort, the most diverse and largest in-flight entertainment programme to date with an interface for your own Bluetooth headset, as well as high-speed internet connectivity for everyone on board.”
The new Business Class offers 30 full lie-flat seats in a 1-2-1 configuration with direct aisle access for all guests. For a peaceful night’s sleep and heavenly dreams on board, the seat conveniently converts to a 1.99-metre lie-flat, just like a bed at home, with extra-large foot space. Business Class guests have access to the latest movies, series, podcasts, and games, all accessible on the minimum 17.3-inch screen in 4K mode, with touchscreen and remote control.
In Premium Economy Class, think economy seats, but with extra legroom, in fact, there’s 6″ more legroom for guests to enjoy in comparison to Economy Class and a greater recline of 6″ too. In addition, the multi-adjustable headrest and footrest at every seat ensure a significantly more comfortable flight experience. Both the Premium Economy Class and Economy Class seats have 13.3-inch in-seat 4K monitors with touchscreens, which can be used to enjoy the extensive in-flight-programme. Condor uses a 2-4-2 seating configuration in both classes.
A brand-new feature awaits guests in all three booking classes: the new A330neo offers high-speed broadband internet and with that a new form of connectivity whilst being aboard. The latest in-flight-entertainment technology provides a select and first-class programme, from which guests can choose their favourites film, series, podcast, or other features. Each seat has an extra holder for a mobile device, so that streaming is also possible. In addition, personal Bluetooth headphones can be connected to the aircraft’s in-flight-entertainment system. For optimal light conditions and a feel-good atmosphere, the cabin features mood lighting that can be individually adjusted for all booking classes to suit the time of day. This helps guests aboard to fall asleep easily and wake up more relaxed.
Visually, this new cabin is actually incredibly striking, showcasing that airlines are adopting bold colour decisions to help bring brands to life. As we start to emerge from the pandemics, airlines are shifting to a higher proportion of premium leisure travellers, and while much of this process was started prior to the pandemic, it is the perfect time for the airline to launch such a cabin, which adopts a premium leisure standpoint firmly as its cabin experience. Yes, we love the stripes.
TheDesignAir 