Class Concepts: Sleeper Class
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New ideas from Teague, Zodiac Aerospace, Airbus, Virgin and more are leaving traditional cabin configurations in the dust. In “Class Concepts,” a multi-part feature originally published in the March/April issue of APEX Experience magazine, APEX Media examines this new wave of concepts that promises a total overhaul of aircraft interiors. Read the full feature here.
As on the ground, a good night’s sleep in flight often comes at a premium. Etihad’s first-class suites set a new standard for sleep in the sky, affording travelers with boutique hotel-style hospitality and the level of privacy required to reach deep REM-quality sleep. Along the same lines, Zodiac’s Desire Lines concept makes use of an airline’s available cargo area to provide private berths, which can provide a premium sleeping experience.
Outside of private areas, lie-flat seats allow first- and business-class passengers to get horizontal, and Air New Zealand’s Economy Skycouch brings lying flat to the back of the cabin, across a row of three chairs.
Tom Eaton thinks that airlines and manufacturers could “do sleep” better if decoupled from the chair. “Too often we just create seats that can do everything. We laden these things with features and consequently they become incredibly expensive,” Eaton says. “So what we decided is, what if we can deliver the sleeping service in another area of
the airplane?”
In addition to the private berths in the cargo area, Zodiac’s Desire Lines makes use of the crown section as another sleeping area. “The idea around it is to offer a much denser sleeping experience than in the cargo area,” explains Victor Carlioz. “It would be an experience comparable to Japanese sleeping pods.”
The Air Lair, envisioned by Contour Aerospace and Factorydesign, takes the pod concept to the extreme, with double-decker pods that would replace a cabin full of standard aircraft seats. Aviointeriors and Formation Group, on the other hand, opt, like Zodiac, to decouple the bed from the chair, but exclusively in business class. Aviointeriors’ Micro Suites position sleeping bunks in the upper center of the business cabin, while Formation Group positions a mini-suite directly above the legroom area of two facing business-class window seats.