Singapore Airlines’ US$150 million upgrade of cabin and inflight entertainment products aims to bring the the airline to the forefront once again of inflight products. The new seating, cabin environments and inflight entertainment systems will be launched on new-delivery 777-300ERs on selected flights between Singapore and London from September.
The new seats and KrisWorld inflight entertainment system will be progressively rolled out to other routes as additional new aircraft enter service, including the airline’s A350s.
The complete redesign in first, business and economy classes is aimed at increasing Singapore Airlines’ product competitiveness with Middle East carriers that have attracted custom away from SIA in recent years.
“The significant investment in our next generation of cabin products reaffirms our commitment to product innovation and leadership, and demonstrates our confidence in the future for premium full-service air travel,” said SIA’s executive vice president commercial, Mak Swee Wah.
Singapore Airlines’ new First Class suite continues the trend set by the airline for personal space, at 35 inches in width and with an increased bed length from 80 to 82 inches.
Extensive research was conducted to determine how best to increase the comfort of the new first class seat. Singapore Airlines described the new product as offering “an ergonomically sculpted cushion and improved adjustable headrest have been introduced for greater seating comfort, while new features such as a padded headboard for extra support and an additional mattress layer ensure customers enjoy a good rest.” Complementing the experience is a new inflight entertainment system that features a 24-inch LCD screen, with video touch-screen handsets.
The new business class seat retains its position as the offers industry’s widest full-flat bed and 79 inches in length, with greater recline at 132 degrees and features an improved ergonomic seat cushion. The new seat also boasts two new seating positions, described by Singapore Airlines as the ‘Lazy Z’ and ‘Sundeck’. There is also increased stowage space.
Other enhanced business class features include an 18-inch LCD screen and video touch-screen handset, as well as an all-in-one business panel including in-seat power supply, USB port, eXport and HDMI ports.
Through the use of innovative design and materials, the new economy class seat provides additional comfort with new backrest seat cushions with side bolsters for better back support. An ergonomically-sculpted headrest cushion, which supports an increased range of height adjustments, offers better neck support.
Economy passengers also benefit from a wider 11.1-inch monitor, featuring an intelligent and unique touch-screen graphical user interface accompanied by a video touch-screen handset.
