LONG - H AUL C ONCEPTS
“ Fitting flat-bed products is
perhaps a knee-jerk reaction”
A rethink is required
Teague responded to our challenge with a concept
that hints at a slightly different use-case for premium
seating in the narrow-body market. While some airlines
are looking at simply trying to replicate their wide-body
experience in a narrower space, Teague believes that
may not be the appropriate approach.
Anthony Harcup, senior director at the studio explains,
“This is a space that I find fascinating because it’s so
new, and I’m excited to see how it will evolve and where
it will settle – right now these products are still finding
their true identity and purpose.
Teague’s concept hints at a tighter pitch to reflect
the density requirements common to narrow-body
business class, with herringbone seats installed close
to 45° to maximise density. The downside of this
arrangement is that it can inhibit the view out of the
window – made worse by having an IFE monitor
in the way. This is where removing the fixed monitor
in favour of an immersive media centre could reinstate
the view and de-clutter the seat design. The media
centre deploys over the occupant’s head to create a
personal and immersive AV experience that does away
with the monitor and headphones.
“As we start to explore this new canvas with purposedesigned
products, it is becoming clearer that fitting
flat-bed products is perhaps a knee-jerk reaction to
a market-demand that we as an industry do not yet
fully understand. Perhaps we should be asking
ourselves ‘what is the problem we are trying to
solve?’”, states Harcup.
For long-haul narrow-bodies, Harcup says that
passengers are more likely to be travelling point-topoint
so the overall flight duration is likely to be four
to six hours. Also, many of these flights will be in the
daytime, and wi-fi connectivity means that passengers
may value productivity over sleep.
“If sleeping is no longer the primary experience,
then we might well be in the experimental first stages
of defining a new generation of products that will
utilise cabin space in a whole new way. We have an
opportunity to redefine what a ‘premium experience’
is in this case. If we don’t need seats to go flat in order
to be comfortable for up to six hours, then where else
should we invest that valuable real estate?”, asks
Harcup. “Perhaps the configuration of furniture will
be very different. If the cushions no longer need to be
flat, perhaps we will see more interesting seats and
upholstery? I predict that narrow-body premium
seating will become the new battle-ground
for IP in aircraft interiors…”
TEAGUE SAYS
THAT TO MAXIMISE
DENSITY, HERRINGBONE
SEATING WILL NEED TO BE
INSTALLED AT AN ANGLE
CLOSE TO 45°
THE USER’S
POINT OF VIEW FROM
INSIDE TEAGUE’S
IMMERSIVE MEDIA
CENTRE CONCEPT
aircraftinteriorsinternational.com
092 MARCH 2020
/aircraftinteriorsinternational.com