B/E Aerospace Soft Launches Aspire and Bombardier Nears C Series Mega Deal: APEX Daily Experience Week in Review
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Here are the most-read stories from this week’s APEX Daily Experience newsletters. To receive breaking passenger experience industry news in your inbox on a daily basis, subscribe here.
B/E Aerospace Launches Next-Gen Wide-Body Seating Platform
BUSINESS WIRE | APRIL 11, 2016
B/E Aerospace launched its next-generation main cabin wide-body aircraft seating platform at last week’s Aircraft Interiors Expo and also announced an order from a major international airline that will become its launch customer. The new Aspire seating solution will offer passengers increased legroom and personal storage, in addition to high-level integration with advanced IFE systems. “These seats will provide airline passengers with unprecedented comfort and functionality within the main cabins of wide-body aircraft,” says Amin J. Khoury, executive chairman of B/E Aerospace.
Interjet Brings BYOD-Friendly SmartTray On Board A320 Fleet
INFLIGHT ONLINE | APRIL 14, 2016
Interjet, in collaboration with aircraft seating services company Airpac Enterprises, has completed retrofitting SmartTray on board its A320 aircraft. The low-cost carrier is the first Mexican airline to feature the mobile device-friendly aircraft tray tables, which are exclusively marketed, sold and manufactured by Astronics Corporation, following a licensing deal last year. “Passengers instantly appreciate the simplicity and usefulness of SmartTray, which allows them to multi-task without juggling PEDs, drinks, food and other personal items,” says Dennis Markert, director of New Business Development for Astronics.
Sofa King: Geven’s Lie-Flat Economy Seats Take Off With SAA
FLIGHT GLOBAL | APRIL 11, 2016
South Africa Airways has been announced as the launch customer of Geven’s Piuma Sofa, a row of four seats that converts into a sofa bed big enough for two adults. Trevor Lambert, Geven’s Marketing and Sales manager, says that the Piuma Sofa doesn’t sacrifice legroom or underseat storage because it doesn’t rely on an extending footrest. The Italian aircraft seat manufacturer is aiming to have a linefit-ready version of its new sofa seat ready for delivery to Airbus by October. A prototype of the lie-flat economy-class seat was on display at last week’s Aircraft Interiors Expo.
Farelogix and Routehappy Join Forces in Platform Integration
APEX MEDIA | APRIL 13, 2016
Routehappy Hub and Farelogix’s FLX Merchandise are joining forces to deliver integrated platforms that will enable airlines to more effectively and dynamically merchandise their flights, differentiate their products and make offers across a variety of channels – worldwide and in any language. The platforms will combine Farelogix’s dynamic pricing and Routehappy’s rich content to create a more informative flight-booking experience. “Integration of Farelogix and Routehappy’s respective platforms will make each more useful to our mutual airline and distributor customers, in turn benefiting travelers, who will receive more differentiated and compelling product offerings and related rich content,” says Routehappy CEO Robert Albert.
Entertainment Unwired: A Roundtable With IFE Experts
APEX MEDIA | APRIL 15, 2016
Just ahead of APEX MultiMedia Market taking place next week in Amsterdam, our roundtable of wireless in-flight entertainment experts discusses their views on current and future trends for portable and blended systems. Portable devices promise airlines fresh opportunities to engage with their customers and have proven especially useful to regional and low-cost carriers because their lightweight and easy set-up enables airlines to offer in-flight content straight to passenger devices where it might not otherwise be available.
Bombardier on Verge of Securing 125 C Series Jet Deal With Delta
AIRWAYS NEWS | APRIL 15, 2016
Delta Air Lines is close to announcing an order for up to 125 Bombardier C Series jets, reports The Wall Street Journal. If confirmed, the deal could be worth between $5.3 billion and $6.2 billion, based on list prices, and would be a major coup for the Canadian aerospace manufacturer. According to the article, Bombardier is expected to reach an agreement with Delta for 75 firm orders and options for 50 additional jets by the end of April, as the US carrier seeks to replace its aging fleet of narrow-body McDonnell Douglas MD-88 jets. However, a Delta spokesperson said no final decision has been made.
