If the COVID-19 pandemic has shown anything, people are more careful about germs and cleaning their hands more often.
ANA is to introduce a new passenger experience option – and it involves their toilets.
And no, not in-flight-bidet*. Rather, the door handle.
You won’t need a hand for this door handle – Image, ANA.
All Nippon Airways has partnered with JAMCO Corporation to develop the world’s first hands-free door that allows easy access to lavatories on its aircraft.
The first hands-free doors will be introduced to Japanese domestic flights starting the 1st of May.
The new lavatory door is equipped with a large inner door locking knob and an additional handle so that passengers can use their elbows to unlock the door.
As the door mechanism is different to those found on other aircraft, the airline will signage has near the lavatory to provide operational instructions.
From the old slide lock to the new elbow handle – Image, ANA.
The hands-free lavatory will be installed on 11 Boeing 787-8 aircraft, two Boeing 787-9 aircraft, and eight Boeing 777-200. The initial installation will be for aircraft serving domestic routes, while ANA hopes to introduce the system to all domestic and international aircraft in the future.
In Quotes
Shinichi Inoue, Senior Executive Vice President, Customer Experience Management & Planning.
“Guided by the principles of ANA Care Promise, we have continued to invest in the development and implementation of innovative technologies because the health and safety of passengers and our staff is the top priority,”
“The hands-free lavatory door is the latest example of us putting this principle into practice as we look for ways to make the travel experience safer and more convenient.”
What was that in-flight bidet* about?
The ANA in-flight bidet. I remember these being installed and in flight use aboard one of their then new Boeing 787-8.
It still haunts my dreams… as does the yelp when first using one…
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Just use a Kleenex tissue?