CA BIN MA TER I A LS
1: THE SEATS IN ECONOMY HAVE
A PLEASING MIX OF TEXTILES
AND LEATHER WITH SUBTLY
CONTRASTING DESIGNS
2. A STRIKING CMF SCHEME ADDS
TO THE ‘WOW FACTOR’ OF THE LOFT,
WITH A WIDE RANGE OF CUSTOM
MULTI-PAINT SYSTEMS, BESPOKE
ISOVOLTA LAMINATES, HARD BLACK
ANODISED BAR SURFACES, BLACK
NICKEL AND GOLD PLATING
3. LARGE SEMI-TRANSLUCENT
PRIVACY PANELS GIVE AN ALLURING
SILHOUETTED VIEW OF
ACTIVITY IN THE LOFT
110 aircraftinteriorsinternational.com
NOVEMBER 2019
CMF CASE STUDY:
Virgin Atlantic A350-1000
Virgin Atlantic’s in-house design team has
created a unique CMF scheme for its A350-
1000s. The overall look is sophisticated and
a little lighter than other aircraft in the fleet, to
accentuate the extra natural light the new Upper
Class LOPA allows into the cabin. As Daniel Kerzner,
the airline’s VP of customer experience says, “it’s
a more grown-up version of Virgin”.
The paler scheme introduces colours and finishes
that pick up the in-seat and cabin mood lighting in
different ways, accentuating the more open feel of the
A350 cabin.
Some darker shades remain, however, such as the
luxurious Claret leather seat trim, contrasted with
intricate stitching in Virgin’s signature scarlet. The
scheme also has a more playful side, with vivid gold
finishes on the reading light and shelving, and a
vibrant gold foil wrapping round from the armrest
to the cocktail table adding a little sparkle.
The CMF scheme has some beautiful details
(see below), and it is something of an ongoing
project. Following the first week
of service for Red Velvet (a name
Virgin’s CMF team must love), the
designers identified a few areas
that will be tweaked. For example,
4. VISUAL INTEREST IS ADDED
TO THE CLARET LEATHER SEAT
TRIM, WITH PERFORATED PANELS
REVEALING TINY FLASHES OF
VIRGIN’S SIGNATURE RED
5. THE LARGE PANEL AT THE
FRONT OF THE UPPER CLASS
CABIN IS BROKEN UP WITH A
VERTICAL PATTERN. THE TEAM
RESISTED THE TEMPTATION TO FIT
A BRANDING PANEL
a fabric that has been designed exclusively
for Virgin for the sofas in the Loft is due to be
replaced with leather.
“We’ve realised that having a leather banquette
would be a better product for our customers and
also from a crew and engineering standpoint.
We’ll change that from cloth to leather, not because
the fabric isn’t performing well – people love it –
but because we’ve recognised that actually leather
would be a better product to have there,” explains
Kerzner.
“The materials that we’ve selected have all been
designed by an in-house design team who really tried
to break the mould of the industry. It’s very easy as an
industry to make decisions out of a catalogue, but for
us that catalogue doesn’t exist. Our catalogue is our
imagination. We get inspiration from other industries
mainly automotive, residential and hospitality
rather than airline designs and use that to introduce
materials, trim and finish that are unlike what any
other airline has.”
“Our customers don’t want us to have a
product on board that everybody else has.
Our customers challenge us to think
differently and to do things that other
airlines aren’t doing.”
6+ 7. A VIBRANT GOLD FOIL IN THE
SUITES IS ECHOED IN THE FINISH
ON THE PERCH AREA IN THE LOFT,
ADDING A LITTLE FUN AND SPARKLE
8. THE HANDLE FOR THE SUITE
DOOR IS A PLEASANT, HIGH QUALITY
HAPTIC TOUCHPOINT WITH THE
AIRLINE BRAND
9. THE TABLE SURFACE IN PREMIUM
IS MADE OF PRESSED WOOL
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/aircraftinteriorsinternational.com