Etihad Airways is flexing its premium muscles as it unveils an all-new first-and business-class experience.
Abu Dhabi carrier on Monday announced hot anticipated cabins coming to its Airbus A321LR jets, the first of which is expected to join the fleet in the coming weeks and start commercial operations on August 1.
The A321LR will be the first single-Issal plane of Etihad with false-flat premium seats. A handful of other nose-to-tail upgrades are also expected.
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Here is everything that you need to know.
Etihad Airbus A321LR first class
In front of the aircraft, you will find All-Nu First-Class Cabin of Etihad, which includes only two seats in a 1–1 arrangement.
These seats are arranged in a reverse herringbone configuration with a friend seat to join or hold for a friend for a friend and a friend for a friend.
The suites also have a 20 -inch 4K entertainment screen with Bluetooth connectivity and Qi wireless charging pads.
This is the first time Etihad will offer a true first class product on a narrow-body aircraft. “When you leave A380 in London or Paris, we want to create that signature first class experience and ensure that you get a consistent first product for your final destination,” said the Chief Revenue and Commercial Officer of Erik Day, Erik Day, said.
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Apart from the seat, Etihad will bring its signature first-class soft product-high food to magnificent facilities-one of these seats will bring passengers sitting in these seats.
While Etihad is marketing and selling these seats as first class, US-based passengers may get acquainted with these products as “Business Class Plus”.
These seats have additional storage space and a large otton and footwell area due to the curvature of aircraft and bulkhed, and different airlines decide to charge for additional spaces in different ways.
In the US, most airlines charge a relatively modest seat upgrade on top of a business-class fare to sit in one of these seats.
Meanwhile, Etihad is going to go to all in the first class.
“All airlines who have this business-plus product, do not have the first class in their DNA. So for them, it is a small journey of a different journey for us. Our journey is more that you have seen. Starlax(Which also provides first class in a bulkhed seat) “Explain Dey.
Note that there will be no cabin division between the first and commercial-class seats on these aircraft, and the toilet access will probably be shared between two cabins.
Etihad Airbus A321LR Business Class
Etihad will also offer 14 business-class pods on Airbus A321LR.
These seats have also been arranged in 1–1 configuration, but they have slightly less space than first class seats.
They face the window, offering slightly more privacy than the same corridor pods, but they have no slipping doors.
While Etihad considered adding doors to these seats, there is an interesting reason why the airline did not choose.
The door is heavy, and Etihad is operated in one of the hottest areas in the world. If Etihad was to install doors in the business class, it would have to restrict the range of these jets, partially LR, or long distance, defeat the purpose of achieving a version of A321.
It was a “tradeoff”, explaining to the DE, who reiterated that the business passengers should still enjoy their experience even without doors.
In terms of connectivity, business-class passengers may expect a 17.3-inch 4K TV screen, Bluetooth wireless connectivity and Qi wireless charging pads.
In addition, the airline is equipping all its A321LRs with viasat satellite Wi-Fi, which provides flyers streaming-capable service on the routes operated by this aircraft. Note that Etihad provides free Wi-Fi for selected premium passengers and makes free messaging for everyone else.
Etihad Airbus A321LR economy class
The rest of the aircraft has 144 economy seats, out of which 36 have additional legrooms.
The seats measure 18.4 inches wide and have a 13.3-inch 4K seat-back monitor, as well as USB charging port.
Etihad says that its purpose is to provide wide-body comfort to the planes of narrow-body, “but we will need to wait until we try ourselves to decide whether we agree with that assessment.
Etihad Airbus A321LR Strategy
Etihad will receive 10 new Airbus A321LR jets by the end of the year, and has a three-dimensional deployment scheme.
The first is to introduce first class and business-oriented suites for markets that are not ready for a wide body capacity, DE explained. Example markets include Chiang Mai in Thailand and Alzires in Algeria.
The second style of the destination is one that is within a radius of about four hours of Abu Dhabi, but it warns a premium-root product. “A big example of this is Seychelles,” D said.
Finally, the Airbus A321LR will be deployed in select commercial markets to help provide more frequency to Etihad. One such example is Paris, which, according to DE, is not ready for the third daily wide-body flight, but can do good with 160 and seats (on A321LR).
D said that the team would evaluate how to update the strategy and requirement of their deployment on a constant basis.
In addition, DE mentioned that the airline will also roll these new cabins in other narrow-body aircraft that serve the same medium-line markets, but they stopped providing more details.
What is coming next
While the A321LR cabin is a new narrow-body passenger experience for Ashra Etihad, major changes are on the horizon.
D teased a handful of updates coming in the next few months, all parts of the airline’s journey 2030 vision include a large fleet, more passenger traffic and fairly extended network.
“Our 787- 9s, 787–10s, and 777s will all undergo a renewal program. We are going to announce the details in the context of the cabin, perhaps in six months, but everything is about to rise. It is a billion-dollar project.”
The other cabin that will be extended soon is residence, Etihad’s apartment-in-the-shy product at Airbus A380, which will look at some reforms declared by the end of the year.
“It’s time to refresh it a little,” D said.
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