This article is published in Aviation Week & Space Technology and is free to read until May 09, 2025. If you want to read more articles from this publication, please click the link to subscribe.
The new Airbus First Class Experience Master Suite.
Airbus has introduced a new “First Class Experience” concept, part of its Airspace cabin family and aimed at greater privacy for premium passengers in the A350-1000.
The announcement, made on April 8 at Aircraft Interiors Expo (AIX), comes as first-class cabins are re-gaining traction. Business class seats have become increasingly similar, and carriers are thus seeing first class as a differentiator. Meanwhile, Airbus wants to establish the A350-1000 as the clear top-of-the-market widebody before the Boeing 777X enters service and challenges it.
The concept is a white canvas for carriers to create their own product, Airbus aircraft interiors marketing director David Paddock said during a virtual visit at AIX. Engineers rearranged the layout of the front section of the cabin to clear up the space between the first two pairs of doors. They relocated the stairs that give access to the crew rest compartment, and they regrouped lavatories and stowage areas in a new center module just behind doors 1. The aircraft can thus accommodate 3-6 first class suites. To give a stronger feeling of space, Airbus has changed the installation of some cables and systems to raise the ceiling, Paddock added.
The “Master Suite” is the concept's centerpiece. It can accommodate two passengers with a dining table, two sofas (convertible into a double bed), dedicated changing area, bar and lavatory. “First class passengers never wait to use the lavatory,” Paddock stressed.
Related Content
