Etihad Airways had a big day today, inviting media and VIPs to see the real interiors of both A380 and 787. To coincide with the reveal, the airline showcased its much anticipated new uniforms at a spectacular show in Abu Dhabi, “paving the way for a new age of glamorous and sophisticated flying,” according to Etihad.…
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Qantas have been very busy this year, revealing a whole host of lounges around the world. Qantas has already had a functioning Business Class lounge since June in Los Angeles, but December 2014 launched the all-new Qantas First Class Lounge for customers travelling from Los Angeles’ TBIT terminal. There are some nods to the original flagship…
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It’s your lucky day if you are arriving into Heathrow Airport’s Terminal 2 and 3. The airport, which is still one of the busiest in the world, has been overhauled over the past few years to keep up with demand and refresh their international image. Delta Arrivals Lounge LHR Terminal 3 Whilst Terminal 3 already…
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Global Architect firm Grimshaw has announced it is not only designing a new airport in Istanbul but also developing the scheme for an airport expansion in Lima, Peru. Whilst designs for Lima have yet to be released (expect them mid 2015), images of the New International Airport in Istanbul showcase the architects design flair. In Peru…
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It’s been a busy day for Cathay Pacific today, with both the launch of their Hong Kong – Manchester route and the grand reveal of their latest lounge. It may look like cigars and a glass of scotch is mandatory as per Mad Men, but we are in love with an über-cool understated new lounge from…
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Etihad Airways has introduced innovative new inflight products and enhancements to its long-haul and ultra-longhaul cabins, lifting the level of its acclaimed onboard service in First, Business and Economy Class. The new upgrade program is also being introduced across the rest of the fleet with products naturally varying on flight duration. “Inspired by the world’s finest…
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Opened Yesterday, Mumbai’s new Terminal 2 GVK Lounge drew our attention to a terminal we unforgivably had overlooked when it was opened earlier this year. We take a closer look at both lounge and its stunning architectural home. The GVK Lounge This opulent and breathtaking lounge is spread across an area of some 30,000 sq.…
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According to Gatwick airport, 20% of travellers arriving into the airport travel on business, so the opening of a new arrivals lounge in the South Terminal makes perfect sense. What makes even more sense, is the new Regus Arrivals Lounge is open to all (at a fee.) The new Regus Express facilities offer convenient access for…
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So you may have guessed we’ve been travelling recently with China Airlines, and for good reason. The Airline’s NextGen program to reinject life into the quieter of the Asian airlines has been nothing short of impressive. The latest element to join this facelift, is the new lounge in Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport’s Terminal 1, situated where…
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Qantas has followed suit of many other airlines over the past few years, unveiling its first ever “retro” inspired livery on one of its brand new Boeing 737 aircraft. The eye catching design is a flying tribute to 70 years of the iconic flying kangaroo logo – a widely recognised symbol of home to millions of intrepid…
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It’s no secret that we love how Fiji Airways have turned themselves around into a successful modern airline, and even with the recent departure of CEO Steven Pilcher, the carrier continues to impress. The latest campaign from the airline “Welcome To Our Home”, better aligns the airline with its goals and also reflects naturally with the…
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Our good friends, Hawaiian Airlines celebrated 85 years of continuous passenger service today from Hawaii. And within those 85 years, have celebrated the very best in Hawaiian hospitality and design. Hawai’i’s first interisland passenger service was launched on Nov. 11, 1929 as Inter-Island Airways, with a flight from Honolulu to Hilo, which took a total of one hour and 40…
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Cathay Pacific have been working on a new brand image for the past few months, and whilst you may be forgiven for going ‘Really?’ we here at thedesignair.net think the subtle difference in the new brand positioning is both striking, powerful and evocative. We have been huge fans of the interior and ground products of the…
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Launched today, with the smell of fresh paint still in the air, Brussels Airlines inaugurated it’s new product: “The Loft” at Brussels International Airport. A fantastic slick new business lounge that puts the heart of Belgian excellence. With this new lounge concept, for which Brussels Airlines has cooperated with top brands and designers, Brussels Airlines “sets…
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Being invited to Aer Lingus’ media event in Dublin, we were treated to the unveiling of the airlines new business class cabin concept. We originally covered the initial design concept back in August, when the airline revealed them, but today marked the physical realization of the designs into fully working seats. Overseen by Factorydesign and…
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Back in April, Air France unveiled its new advertising campaign called “Air France, France is in the air” in the printed press, with coverage in 12 countries (France, Germany, Brazil, Canada, China, Spain, USA, Italy, Japan, Russia, Senegal and Switzerland) as well as on the internet, social media and on the radio. But here at TheDesignAir…
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This has taken us by surprise, as a traditionally non-innovatve travel brand, Thomson Airways today unveiled its radical and forward thinking five year vision to change the face of holiday flying through new state-of-the-art aircraft and innovative on-board product and service concepts. The two centre pieces of this new vision push the boundaries of economy…
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Air China, the second operator of the 747-8i passenger version, has just taken delivery of it’s new ‘Queen of the Skies’ with an interior designed by London based transport and hospitality design specialists, JPA Design. This is the same studio that brought one of the best seats to the skies, with the Singapore Airlines 777…
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Qantas, the day after their inaugural launch of their A380 service to Dallas Fort Worth, announced their brand new Darwin lounge for their premium cabin and valued frequent flyers. The new space is more than double the space of the previous incarnation, which whilst comfortable, wasn’t really anything to write home about. The new space,…
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We covered the A380 roll out for Etihad a few days ago, but their quick succession in rolling out their 787-9 colours shows the world how the livery transposes onto more regularly-shaped airframes. Last night the airline revealed their new 787-9, a proportionally more aesthetic aircraft, with a tail that has been circulating on social media for a few…
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The fact Etihad has a new livery is not a secret anymore, with tail fins on both the A380 and 787 surfacing a few weeks back on social media, with speculation rife on whether these were special one off liveries, or a sporty new look for the relatively young carrier. But this evening in Hamburg…
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We love it when airlines compete against each other to fight for passengers. The end result is a better experience for the travellers. Virgin Australia today announced their brand new business product which will start being rolled out early next year for both domestic and international routes on their wide body fleet. The familiar reverse…
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Liveries around the world are the calling cards for hundreds of different airlines. For some they are the passengers only interaction with the brand image of the airline, so as they park up at the gates of airports globally, they need to be able to communicate the values and concepts that each airline brand stands for.…
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The new Spirit planes. Spirit are the latest low cost carrier to revisit their branding, just a few days after both frontier and southwest, following a trend that TheDesignAir predicted last week. The new design fits with the new website and brand positioning that has been rolled out, offering a simple bold message, with a…
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Last year, we covered Thomas Cook’s new brand image, and it seems the carrier has now brought their interior cabin offering in line with their new brand. The new cabin brings the charter airline’s hard product inline with mainline carriers economy cabins. New food offerings, inflight entertainment and seats are going to make the journeys from…
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By Marisa Garcia | Engineers at Airbus’ A320 Family paint shop in Hamburg, Germany, just developed a unique methodology to radically improve the creative options available to airlines and brand managers by making it possible to directly print livery on the fuselage using inkjet printers–resulting in a faster and more efficient painting process which also allows…
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Sometimes when concepts come along at thedesignair.net we get excited, as they often push the boundaries of the ‘plain plane’ and give us reason to stop and re-evaluate what we consider as the standard experience for today. TEAGUE, with its 80 years of design history, teamed up with ultra-hi-tech Nike to look at the plane environment…
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Talk to any designer after a few drinks, and the usual story will come up, that “design is cyclical and everything that we see now has been seen before”. Bear with us a bit, but Southwest’s refreshed logo and livery speaks volumes to this concept. Southwest Airlines today, officially (compared to the leaked images on social…
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Let us start by saying, we can’t wait until Etihad finally decide to launch a hotel concept, not that they have ever hinted at doing such a thing. The reason being, is that they have spent so many years looking at the hospitality area to develop their entire offering, they have become experts in their…
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Just when we thought we were going to give up on hoping for a less cramped 787 economy cabin, JAL come along and show us that passengers should be treated to extra space, in every cabin. ANA did offer a 2 x 4 x 2 seating configuration in their 787s but that has been phased…
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