Virgin Atlantic has unveiled the cabin for its new Airbus A350-1000 aircraft – and it has been transformed throughout.
The business class section, which Virgin Atlantic calls ‘Upper Class’, features brand new suites and a ‘social space’ called ‘The Loft’.
The carrier operates bars on all its long-haul aircraft, but said that this is ‘the largest social space in the airline’s fleet’.
Virgin Atlantic has unveiled the cabin for its new Airbus A350-1000 aircraft – and it has been transformed throughout. The business class section, which Virgin Atlantic calls ‘Upper Class’, features brand new suites and a ‘social space’ called ‘The Loft’ (pictured)
The new business class suites have been designed in collaboration with a number of Virgin Atlantic’s most frequent flyers. They have deployable privacy divider and 18.5in entertainment screens
Passengers can relax here on sofas, work on the table or use the big-screen TV (32in) to watch a movie or views from the tailcam.
Here’s more on the innovation from a Virgin Atlantic statement: ‘As the first airline to introduce an on-board bar, Virgin Atlantic has taken its customer proposition to the next level.
‘The Loft is designed for customers to gather, chat, enjoy a drink or dine with friends.
‘The Loft extends the airline’s world renowned Clubhouse experience to the skies, offering a wide range of cocktails, and the option for customers to dine together and enjoy Mile High afternoon tea by Eric Lanlard and a selection of delicious new dishes by Donal Skehan.’
The new business class suites have been designed in collaboration with a number of Virgin Atlantic’s most frequent flyers, who clearly did not like the fact that the lie-flat beds moved to a horizontal position in two stages – or that the seats faced each other.
The new upper class seats all transition seamlessly to a lie-flat bed. The current seats transform in two stages
Old school: This image shows the current Virgin Atlantic business class seat
The current upper class cabin (pictured) is laid out with the seats facing each other and those at the edges are turned away from the windows
In the A350 the seats are laid out in a 1-2-1 configuration, with every seat facing towards a window.
And they all transition seamlessly from an upright seat straight to a bed, which is bigger, too – 6ft 8.3in, up from 6ft 7.5in.
In addition, all the seats have deployable privacy screens.
The in-flight entertainment screen, meanwhile, has been boosted to 18.5inches – up from 10.1in on the 747 and 11in on the Dreamliner – and can be controlled by a personal device.
The screens in premium and economy have been increased in size, too, up from nine to 10 inches (depending on the aircraft) to 13.3in in premium and 11.6in in economy.
Premium passengers will also get more storage space and economy passengers can look forward to new ‘luxurious fabrics’ and adjustable headrests.
The entire aircraft will also have access to high speed Wi-Fi.
The first A350 flight will operate on the airline’s flagship Heathrow to New York JFK route, taking to the skies in August.
The screens in premium (pictured) and economy have been increased in size, up from nine to 10 inches (depending on the aircraft) to 13.3in in premium and 11.6in in economy
Premium passengers will get more storage space and economy passengers can look forward to new ‘luxurious fabrics’ and adjustable headrests. Pictured is a new A350 premium seat
The entire aircraft will also have access to high speed Wi-Fi. Pictured is the new A350 economy seat
The first A350 flight will operate on the airline’s flagship Heathrow to New York JFK route, taking to the skies in August. New economy seat pictured
Virgin Atlantic has ordered a total of 12 Airbus A350-1000s. They are all scheduled to join the fleet by 2021 in an order worth an estimated $4.4 billion (£3.36 billion).
The aircraft are powered by Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines and are designed to be 30 per cent more fuel and carbon efficient than the aircraft it replaces.
They will be the first to feature Virgin’s new ‘flying icons’, set to replace the ‘flying ladies’ at the front of the fuselage. These new high flyers are a diverse range of men and women ‘representing modern Britain’.
Virgin Atlantic has ordered a total of 12 Airbus A350-1000s. They are all scheduled to join the fleet by 2021 in an order worth an estimated $4.4 billion (£3.36 billion)
Commenting on the new Virgin Atlantic upper class suite and new A350 layout, Rob Burgess, editor of frequent flyer website www.headforpoints.com, said: ‘Virgin Atlantic has grown up! I think the new upper class Suite is classy and smart and solves most of my problems with the current seat. You have more privacy, you have far more personal space, the IFE screen is much bigger, and you don’t need the help of the cabin crew to turn the seat into a bed.
‘Little tweaks like being able to use your phone to control the IFE and the adjustable suite mood lighting, as well as the simultaneous introduction of new bedding and toiletries, mean that the entire upper class experience should be transformed. There will also be Wi-Fi for the first time.
‘The Loft is a brave attempt at trying something new with an on-board social hub. Instead of a bar, you have a sofa where families can watch a big-screen TV together and a table where colleagues can sit and work. I have to admit that I’m intrigued to see if it takes off.
‘The changes to the premium and economy cabins, whilst more modest in scope, show an attempt to create a more upmarket image. The premium seat, for example, is definitely the love-child of luxury car seats in terms of leather quality and stitching.
A design sketch for the new Virgin Atlantic ‘loft’ space. Virgin Atlantic said: ‘The Loft is designed for customers to gather, chat, enjoy a drink or dine with friends’
A 2016 design sketch for the new Virgin Atlantic upper class suite. Commenting on the new Virgin Atlantic upper class suite and new A350 layout, Rob Burgess, editor of frequent flyer website www.headforpoints.com , said: ‘Virgin Atlantic has grown up! I think the new upper class Suite is classy and smart’
‘Virgin Atlantic will be able to get its new seat onto the top routes more quickly than the new British Airways club suite. Its first route has been confirmed as New York JFK from August. With no first class on BA’s new A350 fleet, club suite will initially be heading to secondary cities such as Toronto and Dubai. Virgin Atlantic can get the upper hand by putting the new upper class suite on New York, Los Angeles, Washington and so on immediately. It is only a shame that there is no firm timetable for refitting the rest of Virgin’s fleet.
‘Whether or not flyers prefer the new British Airways club suite or the new Virgin Atlantic upper class suite, the real winner is the UK business traveller. They now have two new seats to fly which rank among the very best of all European and North American airlines.’
Mark Anderson, Executive Vice President Customer at Virgin Atlantic, commented: ‘The introduction of our A350 represents a true evolution of our customer experience.’