Yesterday, Qantas unveiled its planned interior for its upcoming Airbus A350 aircraft for “Project Sunrise” – the airlines’ ambitious Ultra-Long Haul non-stop services plan, with them focusing on the premium cabins.
We will get to the premium cabins in a bit – as there is plenty to discuss before then.
The first thing we are going to look at… is the LOPA – Or the Location of Passenger Accommodations. Provided by Qantas, is the LOPA for this Airbus A350-900.
Qantas Airbus A350-900 LOPA – Image, Qantas.
What can we learn from this? The seating layout and the planned location of the “Wellness zone”.
Breaking down the image from nose to tail:
- First Class is at the front of the plane. This contains two rows in a 1-1-1 formation, offering six seats
- 52 Business Class Suites in a 1-2-1 configuration
- 40 Premium Economy Seatsi in a 2-4-2 formation
- The “Wellness zone”
- 140 Economy Class seats in a 3-3-3 formation
According to the airline, the 12 aircraft will be configured in this 238-seater configuration to deliver comfort – compared to the 300+ seaters that other airlines operate.
The interior has been developed by a mix of aviation specialists, as well as Australian industrial design studio Caon Design, and a multidisciplinary team of scientists from the University of Sydney’s Charles Perkins Centre, including sleep scientists.
Onto the cabins
The First suite will have a range of features to make customers feel like they are in a mini boutique hotel room complete with an extra-wide fixed bed, separate recliner chair, personal wardrobe, dining table for two and a 32” ultra-high definition TV.
Every Business suite will have direct aisle access for ease of moving around the cabin, and Qantas is incorporating sliding doors into the suite for privacy if desired.
Other features include a two-metre flatbed, generous storage (including a large mirror), cushioned leather ottoman, an 18” ultra-high definition touch screen TV, a large dining table and feature lighting.
First and Business will offer multiple personal devices charging options, including wireless induction charging.
Connectivity too
For those who want to be connected whilst in a tube for 20 hours or so (given the desire to operate Sydney-London/New York), Qantas will partner with Viasat to deliver fast and free high-speed Wi-Fi with – following completion of key satellite launches covering the Qantas international network.
The aircraft will also feature Bluetooth connectivity allowing all customers to connect their own Bluetooth-enabled headset to the in-flight entertainment system, so you can use your own headphones and not the airline-supplied ones.
For those in the cheap seats… you’re going to have to wait.
We’ve seen how Qantas is innovating in the front of the cabin. For those in the cheap seats (Premium Economy or Economy Class), or looking forward to the Wellbeing zone, Qantas will be revealing all at a later date.
In Quotes
Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce said:
“Qantas has been the leader in opening up new long-haul flights for most of our history, and we’re bringing everything we’ve learned, both technically and in terms of passenger comfort, to Project Sunrise flying,” said Mr Joyce.
“We think our A350 cabins have the most sophisticated and thoughtful design of any airline, combining cutting edge technology with sleep research to shape the look and feel for what is effectively a new era of travel.
“We’re building on the customer experience of our extremely popular non-stop flights from Perth to London as we keep working to make it easier to connect Australia with the rest of the world.”
Australian designer David Caon said:
“We began designing this aircraft cabin five years ago, working with Airbus and Qantas to maximise space, as well as creating a tailored lighting program that will influence mood and sleep patterns,” said Mr Caon.
“All the design and service elements will work together to significantly improve inflight comfort, convenience and health and wellbeing and help minimise the old nemesis of jetlag.
“Every element has been created for Qantas, from the reading light right down to the fabrics, to ensure that passengers spend their journey in refined comfort.
“There are also a number of storage design elements to keep personal items within arm’s reach so the space can be personalised by each individual passenger to feel just like they are in their own bed at home.”
Innovative? Maybe. Rehashing Concepts? Certainly. Missing details? For sure.
Whilst it is nice to have renders of pretty seats, these products are only scratching the surface. The seat+bed concept was launched long ago with Lufthansa, with Etihad refining it, whilst nearly every airline is slapping a door on their business class suites to deliver a private experience since Qatar Airways rolled out its concept, and everyone followed.
And I’m sure the industrial designers will have more than a few fingerprints over this, as they work with seating manufacturers to deliver these products.
There are some good passenger experience touches coming along too, such as induction charging, larger screens and of course – free Wi-Fi (because if you think you won’t get bored of the IFE Experience, I’m sure you won’t be saying that after going through the same few episodes of the Big Bang Theory.
But there are plenty of missing details – with the LOPA giving a little away in regards to Premium Economy and Economy, which covers over 75% of the cabin.
These details are going to be key in the ultra-long-haul mission that will be filling the back of the aircraft – sometimes at very high prices.
It will be interesting to see who will be tapped for the seating products, as well as IFE features.
But for now, there are still plenty of details missing from the Project Sunrise pictures, from an aircraft interior’s point of view.
All Images, Qantas.
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