Passenger seat rules and regulations regarding ergonomics haven’t really changed in decades. However, as a race, human’s have continued to evolve, and we’re getting larger and taller. This means economy seats and cabins once comfortable for passengers in the 1960’s are no longer viable for today’s traveller. In fact the CDC says between 1960 and…
Read MoreIn recent years Air Seychelles has reconfigured its route network and fleet opting for narrow-body aircraft over their long haul routes, relying on their strategic partnership with Etihad to feed the traffic to their tropical paradise home. With this repositioning comes a new breed of aircraft for the carrier, the A320neo which will operate the…
Read MoreTheDesignAir is pleased to announce another show on YouTube. Titled ‘Design Details’ we lift the lid on the latest product launches and get to grips with what this means for us, as passengers. The show joins our regular round up to give our readers more ways to consume our content.
Read MorePAL’s A350 – featuring a brand new cabin product – will soon start flying on its long-haul city pairing of Manila to London Heathrow. The lighting system onboard might not have taken the limelight, but it certainly creates it, designed as part of a truly holistic cabin concept. “Following on PAL’s A330 retrofit and new…
Read MoreThe new incarnation of Virgin Australia has continued its previous tradition of offering a very special lounge to its most prestigious guests. Today saw the curtain lift on the airline’s long-awaited invitation-only private ‘Beyond Lounges’ in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, reserved for corporate partners, some high-status Velocity Frequent Flyer members and key opinion leaders throughout…
Read MoreLike many things in the aviation industry, there are always one or two major suppliers in most cases dominating the industry, whether its Boeing or Airbus, Rolls Royce or GE and within business class seats let’s face it, Collins Aerospace or Safran, but there are just as capable competitors on the fringe. Recaro and Thompson…
Read MoreBritish Airways’ recent upgrade to its Club World with the new Club World Suite has given the carrier a bit of a conundrum. As the airline has started the retrofit of its fleet with the new Business Class product, it’s left the First Class cabin, even the latest incarnation offering very little difference on paper.…
Read MoreLast week, Hanoi-based FLC Group launched the brand design of upstart carrier Bamboo Airways. Aviation design studio LIFT Strategic Design won a global competition to develop the airline’s brand, including logo, livery and cabin interior. Daniel Baron, LIFT’s CEO, said: “we are thrilled to be working with FLC Group and Bamboo Airways on this unique…
Read MoreYou may have headed to the Maldives recently, in a bid to escape the confines of constant lockdowns and an approaching Northern Hemisphere winter. With Maldives being one of the only destinations that has been open to tourism for many, its quickly shifted from the honeymoon destination of dreams to a must-visit for those just…
Read MoreToday sees the opening of the latest Swiss lounge in Zurich, replacing the old First Class lounge in the A gates of Terminal 2, the new Alpine Lounge helps provide some respite to the Schengen departure swells due to the morning and evening flight banks. The airline has several lounges already across Zurich, and all…
Read MoreWe caught up with Daniel Baron, founder of LIFT Strategic Design, the design studio behind the latest Philippine Airlines A330-300 cabin. It’s safe to say LIFT has had a long standing relationship with PAL over the years, “we have worked with PAL on thirteen different seat programs over the past decade, starting with their…
Read MorePhilippine Airlines is upgrading its North American and European routes with the airline’s brand new A350. Starting with New York in July and followed by London, passengers on these long haul routes will experience an enhanced in-flight product. The tri-class A350-900 will feature 30 business class seats, 24 premium economy seats and 241 economy seats. …
Read MoreIt’s true that when most livery redesigns are revealed, public reaction is usually mixed, with a hint of disappointment due to what can only be described as a world shortage of coloured paint. However, thankfully, this shortage hasn’t reached the Pacific yet where colour still seems to be in abundance. The latest carrier to rebrand…
Read MoreFlight: WY103 Aircraft Type: 787-9 Class: Business Class Route: MCT-LHR Date: March 2019 http://www.omanair.com After our outbound trip in Oman Air’s outstanding First Class product, it was time to return home and give the equally impressive Business Class a run for its money. While the Apex Suite is a seasoned favourite for many travellers, it is interesting to see how this…
Read MoreThis is perfectly timed good news for football fans who are headed to the World Cup. Two new business lounges have just opened at Moscow’s largest International airport, Sheremetyevo in time to welcome travellers for the FIFA World Cup, kicking off on June 14th. Both lounges were designed by international transport and hospitality specialists, JPA…
Read Moreflydubai today showed off its new interiors for its’ 737 Max 8 Aircraft designed by JPA Design. The first aircraft, bearing the UAE registration mark A6-MAX, is the first of 76 aircraft on order from Boeing; all of which will be delivered by 2023. No less than six of these aircraft will join the flydubai fleet…
Read MoreFinnair have continued their long-standing relationship with Finnish design and textile company Marimekko with the introduction of their 11th A350, joining the fleet in late September. Titled ‘Kivet’, the aircraft isn’t the first aircraft to sport a special Marimekko design, however it is the first for the next generation Airbus aircraft. While the inside of…
Read MoreHainan Airlines has elevated its uniform to unparalleled heights with the introduction of the new Laurence Xu designs, which were revealed at Paris Couture Week two days ago.
Read MorePAL’s drive to become a five-star airline by 2020 has taken a leap in the right direction. Their first aircraft to offer a true full lie-flat seat in business class has rolled out of the hangar. The A330-300, which will start flying to Honolulu this month will be offering passengers a vastly improved experience. As…
Read MorePhilippine Airlines‘ plan to create a 5-star airline have taken a huge leap forward this week, with the announcement that they will convert the cabin lay-out of eight economy-only A330-300s to include brand new Business Class, Premium Economy and Economy class cabins. PAL is one of a few Asian carriers who have been stuck in the middle…
Read MoreFlight: TK15 Aircraft Type: 777-300ER Class: Business Class Route: IST-GRU Date: April 2017 http://www.turkishairlines.com Turkish Airlines has certainly caught our attention recently. In our first report on the airline’s short-haul product, they impressed us with a region-beating business class product. As part of our three part series we were happy to explore their signature long haul product, which stars in their latest…
Read MoreAustralia’s Gold Coast is set to receive a very contemporary new terminal ahead of the Commonwealth Games in 2018. Construction is just about to start on a new terminal building which will rise to three stories tall and feature 4 jet bridges. With over 6 million passengers a year, the airport is one of Australia’s largest…
Read MoreThe Streets of Hong Kong have just got a little bit snappier today. Hong Kong-based HK Express launched its new uniform for cabin crew designed by LIFT Strategic Design, which also created the airline’s brand and cabin interior. In a shift from the normal buzz of employing a fashion designer to create the uniforms for…
Read MoreMove over Emirates and Panama City, there’s a new ultra-long-haul flight on the horizon. Announced yesterday, Singapore Airlines has signed an agreement to be the launch customer for a new ultra-long-range variant of the Airbus A350 aircraft, enabling the resumption of non-stop flights between Singapore and the United States replacing the carrier’s older A340-500 services that…
Read MoreThis may not be the most well-known airline internationally, but PNG Air certainly will be turning heads thanks to a new livery and brand developed by Principals Group, a brand strategy and identity company with offices in Sydney, Melbourne and Auckland. Launched this month in Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea (one of the most challenging…
Read MoreTheDesignAir is proud to launch our Top 10 lists for 2016 starting with our Top 10 International First Classes. Competition this year is tough, with a lot of carriers around the world investing into the front of the plane. TheDesignAir has adopted a new judging matrix for 2016, which includes a variety of criteria including cabin design, seat design,…
Read MoreDomestic travel in the US is really heating up now, with a new wave of interiors just launched by United. Starting with the A319 next week, the new interior will be rolled out on A319s, A320s, 737s and 757s throughout 2016. The new interiors are custom created for the airline as it pushes hard to…
Read More2015 has been an impressive year for the aviation industry, with many carriers pulling up their socks and vying for the all-elusive lucrative passenger. With oil-prices lower than before, airlines are snapping at the opportunity to revisit their products, launch new aircraft and impress their paying consumers. This means one thing, a better experience for…
Read MoreFlight: BA073 Aircraft Type: B787-9 Class: ‘First’ First Class Route: LHR-AUH-MCT Date: January 2016 http://www.ba.com We were curious last year to see how British Airways new First product on their 787-9 were going to reinvent the first class experience, but when we had the chance to experience the product first-hand (forgive the pun) we jumped at the chance to see why…
Read MoreThis month we cover 2015’s Top 10 Premium Economy Classes. Investing more into their new mid-cabin classes, airlines are fighting to offer passengers extra elements to lift the experience—on the ground and in the air. With Singapore Airlines entering the fray this year, the list is open to change as we continue to review the world’s very best Premium Economy Classes.…
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