From conceptualisation to certification, the timeline can span several years, says Mr Ingo Wuggetzer, vice-president of cabin marketing at Airbus, Europe’s largest aerospace company. “Each component – a seat, a lighting system, even the sidewall lining – goes through rigorous testing.”
Airlines and manufacturers consult stakeholders, run trial sessions and gather extensive feedback before arriving at a cabin design they are willing to put into production.
The costs are equally significant. German aviation giant Lufthansa Group, for instance, has invested €2.5 billion (S$3.78 billion) into product and service improvements since after the Covid-19 pandemic to the end of 2026.
The project includes upgrades like more spacious seats and a new in-flight entertainment system with Bluetooth connectivity to personal devices.
“Aircraft cabin design is a very complex task that contains several variables,” says Mr Marco Willa, head of onboard experience at Lufthansa Group. “When it is done well, it really is a masterpiece.”
Over the past decade, two priorities have shaped cabin design more than any others: weight reduction and the use of sustainable materials, says Mr Vito Mirko Giacovelli, Cabinair Group’s commercial director.
Cabinair Group is a Britain-headquartered collective of aviation companies that provide solutions in areas like aircraft interior design, maintenance and repair.
Weight reduction matters because a lighter aircraft burns less fuel, boosting efficiency and airline revenue. A familiar example is slimmer seating, achieved by reducing cushion thickness. Meanwhile, sustainable materials such as bamboo, recycled plastics and carbon fibre have made their way into panelling, flooring and upholstery – cutting both cabin weight and environmental impact.
But there is a trade-off. “Passengers are starting to push back on this trend, especially when reduced space and comfort don’t translate to lower fares. As a result, customers are becoming more loyal to airlines that deliver the best overall experience,” says Mr Giacovelli.
Juggling passenger and airline needs
While safety remains the top priority in cabin design, other factors are constantly at play.
Mr Yogesh Tadwalkar, director of ergonomics consulting firm Synergo Consulting and health tech start-up BalanceFlo AI, points to four other key parameters that often compete for attention: revenue maximisation, comfort, functionality and aesthetics.
Mr Tadwalkar, who has provided ergonomics expertise and training to major aviation players such as Airbus and Thales, says: “There are always some trade-offs between these. For instance, the trade-off between revenue maximisation and comfort would be packing in as many rows of seats as possible, which will have an impact on leg room.”
Ultimately, it is up to airlines to decide where one parameter takes precedence over another and how far each threshold can be pushed.
Trends in economy class over the decades, Mr Tadwalkar notes, show a clear shift where safety-related features have steadily improved, but cabin ergonomics – including seat pitch and recline angle – have deteriorated.
Still, some gems remain and newer features powered by technology are enhancing the flight experience. Here are five that make your flight safer and more comfortable.
1. Seats that will not catch fire
Airbus’ Mr Wuggetzer finds that one often overlooked, yet critical, cabin design constraint is flammability. “Every material, and combination of materials, must pass strict tests proving they will not burn for at least two minutes, in order to allow for safe evacuation of the aircraft in case of an emergency,” he says.
German airline Lufthansa’s newest cabin concept Lufthansa Allegris features new seats in all classes of travel that are said to offer more comfort, flexibility and privacy. PHOTO: LUFTHANSA
Aviation authorities like the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore and the Federal Aviation Administration mandate fire-resistant materials for aircraft seats.
Mr Tadwalkar says this means all seat cushions have fire-blocking layers – typically made of synthetic or glass fibres – and fabrics, foams and carpets are tested to resist toxic smoke generation and be self-extinguishing.
2. Sixteen million lighting colours for better health
A more recent development is airlines’ use of advanced LED lighting that can shift in colour and intensity to suit different stages of a flight.
The Airbus A350 aircraft, for instance, features a lighting system that can create an immense number of ambience scenarios with 16.3 million available colours.
Airbus’ Airspace cabins reimagine the travel experience for passengers, and include features like an ambient lighting system and large overhead compartments. PHOTO: AIRBUS
“It can be programmed to reduce jet lag by up to three or four hours, helping passengers adjust more quickly to new time zones,” says Mr Wuggetzer.
According to Lufthansa’s Mr Willa, adjusted lighting can counteract symptoms of jet lag like fatigue, dizziness and headaches, especially when flying across several time zones. The company works with Hamburg-based start-up jetlite, which has produced a science-backed light technology to reduce jet lag.
“An algorithm controls the cabin lighting according to flight time, duration and direction, as well as the time zones, daylight and seasons at the departure and destination points. More than 24 different light scenarios can be created to positively influence passengers’ biorhythms,” he adds.
3. Cabin air is cleaner than average indoor spaces
Clean cabin air is one of the least visible yet most important factors shaping the flight experience.
According to the International Air Transport Association, most modern aircraft are fitted with high-efficiency particulate air (Hepa) filters, which are 99.9 per cent effective at removing viruses, bacteria and fungi.
Mr Choong Weng On, vice-president of engineering at low-cost carrier Scoot, says cabin air is typically changed completely every six minutes.
“When we talk about air quality, we often measure it by how many times air from the inside is exchanged with air from the outside. The rate of air exchange in an aircraft… is comparable to that of hospitals,” he says.
Contrary to popular belief, air in the cabin does not flow along the length of the plane, but instead rotates in a circular motion from top to bottom throughout the cabin. This optimised airflow prevents the spread of contaminants longitudinally and ensures a constant supply of fresh air, according to experts who spoke with ST.
4. Aircraft fuselage material affects cabin air pressure
At a cruising altitude of around 30,000 to 40,000 ft, outside air pressure is far too low for humans to breathe unaided. Aircraft cabin pressurisation artificially increases air pressure within the cabin to simulate a lower altitude during high-altitude flight.
Until the early 2010s, the industry standard of cabin pressurisation was around 8,000 ft. That changed in 2011, when the Boeing 787 Dreamliner entered service with a lower cabin altitude of 6,000 ft, as a result of using composite materials to build its fuselage.
A composite fuselage is both stronger and lighter than traditional aluminium designs, allowing better pressurisation in the cabin. Lower cabin altitude is typically related to better passenger comfort as it can alleviate fatigue, nausea and headaches, which could help reduce jet lag.
Today, other aircraft like the Airbus A350 and A380 also feature a 6,000 ft pressurised cabin. This lower cabin altitude is now seen as the standard airlines strive to match.
5. Larger windows increase perceived space
One of the most noticeable upgrades in newer aircraft is the size of the windows.
“One of the major asks of airlines has always been that aircraft need more natural lighting. The whole cabin will look more spacious,” says Mr Choong.
Bigger windows allow the cabin to be flooded with natural light, which often helps to increase perceived space and reduces the feeling of confinement.
Scoot’s newest Embraer E190-E2 aircraft feature 30.9cm-wide windows, which are 34 per cent larger than an Airbus A320neo aircraft’s windows. PHOTO: SCOOT
The Embraer E190-E2 is Scoot’s newest aircraft. It features a 2-2 seating configuration and windows with a 30.9cm width. The single-aisle Airbus A320neo aircraft, in comparison, have windows of 23cm width.
Scoot uses the aircraft to fly to short-haul destinations like Vientiane in Laos and Phu Quoc in Vietnam.
“The size of windows is more obvious relative to the whole cabin. The Embraer features a smaller cabin, so the big windows increase the sense of openness,” says Mr Choong.
Plane Truths is a new series that makes sense of air travel. For more travel stories, go to str.sg/travel
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Sarah Stanley is a journalist at The Straits Times who covers travel, lifestyle and aviation.
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