Qantas, the Australian flag carrier, is to be the retrofit launch operator for a new Airbus Cabin-Flex option on A380 aircraft that can add up to 11 extra premium economy seats or seven business class seats.
Airbus confirmed at Aircraft Interiors Expo (AIX) in Hamburg that it has developed the new option called ‘A380 Cabin-Flex’. The solution consists of a new arrangement of the cabin door area on the upper-deck, suitable for premium configuration with lower density seat counts, allowing airlines to gain revenue-earning floor-space for extra seating without compromising on passenger comfort. The enhancement is available either for line-fit and retrofit.
Qantas chose to be the launch operator for the A380 Cabin-Flex on its current A380 fleet from mid-2019.
Airbus added that the solution makes available the extra space for additional seats by allowing the upper-deck at ‘Door-3’ to be deactivated. In terms of economics, the extra seats translate into a typical return on investment (RoI) within around one year for the retrofit solution, it says.
The aircraft manufacturer also pointed out that passengers can now specifically select the A380 when booking a flight via the ‘iflyA380.com’ website. A total of 223 A380s are operated by 13 airlines at present.
