What does the future hold for flying?

It’s bad enough getting through the series of queues at major airports—check-in, passport control, security and boarding. But the relief at getting to your seat can evaporate with cramped conditions, full lockers and the realisation that you should have brought your own sandwiches. 

With the global air passenger numbers set to double to more than six billion in the next 20 years, according to industry statistics, it’s a challenge that airlines are trying to confront. And with some success.

When Jill and Jeremy Joseph from London flew from Heathrow to Nice for a medical conference in Monaco recently, they noticed a number of improvements to BA’s economy cabin: contoured leather seats with fully adjustable headrests and relocated magazine receptacles—now at the top of the seat backs to free up some extra leg space—plus tablet holders for attaching iPads. BA’s revamp also includes mood lighting, powered by ecologically efficient light-emitting diodes (LEDs). 

"When we choose an airline, we want to feel we’re in safe hands"

It’s part of a global aero-industry trend towards using technology to put customers in their comfort zone.

Comfort isn’t just about ergonomic seats, of course. It’s about creating a sense of well-being all down the line—through crew attentiveness, cabin ambience and a sense of spaciousness. Catering and in-flight entertainment are factors too.

“I think BA exceeds the standard,” says Jeremy, whose work as an eye surgeon makes him especially appreciative of visual aspects, though his comment also applies to the quality of service and the crew’s experience underpinning it. Jill adds: “When we choose an airline, we want to feel we’re in safe hands. Traditional airlines convey that sense of maturity and assurance. For us, that’s a comfort factor.”

Successfully reconciling comfort for the maximum number of passengers with the limitations of aircraft cabins is the Holy Grail of the industry. Psychological factors have a role in building the comfort perception, but the big challenge for airlines is simply how to maximise physical space for economy-class passengers.

Every spring in Hamburg, airline executives converge on the Aircraft Interiors EXPO, where the latest cabin products are showcased by industry suppliers. Adventurous concepts and prototypes are exhibited.

At recent EXPOs, seating in all sorts of unconventional configurations have been proposed. Airbus filed a patent for a “reconfigurable passenger bench” in February—a seat that can be rapidly adapted for different combinations of passengers, from families with small children to people with restricted mobility.

It’s not uncommon for the kind of cabin amenities enjoyed in first and business class to filter down to economy as airlines leapfrog each other to provide more comfort at the back of the plane. We’ve seen this already on long-haul flights, where fully flat beds, once the preserve of first class, have become the norm for business class across Europe.

Beds are now starting to appear in economy into a double bed. It’s a trend that’s starting to be seen in Europe, with Air Astana launching its “Economy Sleeper Class” between Kazakhstan and London Heathrow, Frankfurt, Paris and Hong Kong.

For many airlines, reconfiguring the seating isn’t an option, but might something be done with existing seats? Swiss textiles company Lantal has come up with Pneumatic Comfort System (PCS), which lets passengers adjust the firmness of cushions.

The PCS cushions—which have been installed in some Lufthansa, Swiss, Austrian, jetBlue and edelweiss planes—are lighter than standard airline cushions, and this saving could be exploited to add further amenities.

Cabin comfort is also about having adequate stowage space for the paraphernalia that passengers bring onboard these days.

Predrag Sasic is a petrochemicals trader who flies every week from Zurich across Europe and beyond, with various airlines—in business and economy class. “My ever-changing work schedule and the fact that I have to hop on flights at short notice—sometimes with tight connections—means that there isn’t time to check luggage into the hold. So a bit of extra overhead space would be welcome.”

That would suit airlines too—speedier stowage of carry-on luggage helps shave off valuable seconds when boarding and disembarking.

Boeing has unveiled its solution in the form of “Space Bins”. These over-head lockers have 48 per cent more capacity than previous versions of its 737; so 194 wheelie bags, rather than 132, can be stowed. Alaska Airlines was the first to install them last year, and European airlines Air Europa and Jet2.com are set to follow.

Funnily enough, airlines are actually quite keen for us to bring our gadgets into the cabin. Personal electronic devices (PEDs), such as smartphones and tablets, are improving at such a pace that airlines are struggling to upgrade their seat-back entertainment systems fast enough. 

Airlines are asking themselves why they should invest in entertainment systems that add weight, become obsolete quickly and deliver inferior quality compared to their passengers’ own devices. An aviation IT survey shows that two-thirds of passengers want to be able to use their own PEDs for in-flight entertainment. 

Airlines have reacted: International Airlines Group recently struck a deal with aviation technology provider Gogo to bring its satellite-based high-speed broadband system to 118 BA, four Aer Lingus Boeing 757 and up to 15 Iberia long-haul aircraft. Installation starts next year on the BA fleet, with completion scheduled for 2019.

Passengers might like internet access using their own devices, but Predrag Sasic cautions that there has to be a balance: “On short flights I listen to music, and on long-haul I watch movies. I guess it would be useful to read emails on long flights, so you’re not missing anything. On the other hand, sometimes it’s nice not to be reachable.”

Linking with our gadgets is one thing, but airlines are also trying to connect through our emotions, via the touchy-feely parts of the in-flight experience.

Those flying long-haul may have noticed artificially sequenced LED “mood lighting” that simulates the tones of sunset and sunrise, which, the makers maintain, can help reduce jet lag; Virgin Atlantic and Emirates are well known for this. 

Mood-control lighting is spreading to short-haul flights too: Icelandair installed an LED system, Hekla Aurora, on one of its 757s last year, which uses flashing coloured lights to recreate the experience of the Aurora Borealis in the cabin. 

“Airlines are trying to connect through our emotions, via the touchy-feely parts of the in-flight experience” 

The well-being effect of lighting isn’t the only benefit. LEDs last ten times longer than previous lighting technologies. The system can even be adjusted to cast a orange glow to make food look more appetising. 

Appealing to the senses takes in smell too. Iberia has created its own cabin fragrance called “Mediterráneo de Iberia”. The scent is intended to give passengers a “sense of well-being”, with notes of fruit, flowers and wood, and a touch of citrus.

Meals are a key part of the in-flight experience on any self-respecting airline. While the smell and ambience of a restaurant can whet the appetite, the food has to meet expectations. At altitude, cabin pressure reduces our senses of taste and smell by around 30 per cent, so European carriers are using new approaches to making food more palatable while retaining traditional presentation. 

Travellers increasingly expect the dishes they enjoy to be replicated at 30,000 feet. But much equipment is incompatible with onboard safety standards, and a niche industry has emerged making airliner-compatible espresso machines, convection ovens, skillets and rice steamers—to cater for the more adventurous tastes of the worldly-wise traveller.

When Predrag Sasic’s wife Mira flew economy class from Zurich to Belgrade on Air Serbia, she felt the airline was recreating a sense of nostalgia:

So much for the interior. What about the planes themselves? There are some subtle differences in the shape of planes these days. More and more of them have winglets, or sharklets—those pointy tips at the end of the wings. And if you’re flying on Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner, you may notice the zigzag-shaped trailing edge on the engines. These save fuel, reduce emissions, drive down ticket prices—and also improve the experience by reducing cabin noise. 

All of these features are made possible by increasing use of carbon composite in aircraft construction. It’s an incredibly tough and resilient material, composed of carbon fibres that are bonded and reinforced with polymers, which is superseding aluminium alloys and steel.

Aesthetically, composite material also enables design in the cabin to be more fluid. A new cabin design concept called Airspace by Airbus has already been incorporated into Airbus’s new A330neo.

Airbus says that Airspace cabins will be “more relaxing, inspiring, beautiful and functional”. Among the improvements will be larger overhead storage, more spacious toilets, wider seats and aisles, and unobstructed under-seat foot space.

“Remember what it was like before Southwest Airlines? You didn’t have hostesses in hot pants,” declares a blonde air hostess in the airline’s TV adverts of 1972. Some passengers may lament the disappearance of revealing attire, but today’s crew image is a little subtler—about assurance, service and a gentle sense of humour.

Jeremy recalls, “I was flying back to London from Namibia in June just as results of the EU Referendum were starting to come through, and the captain quipped through the PA system that he wasn’t sure whether or not we would be landing in the EU that evening.”

The next trend in service will be the use of “big data”, as airlines continue to capture more passenger intel and use it to ask if you want your favourite drink, as they address you and your companions by name. 

Some data comes from passengers subscribing to loyalty programmes, creating a digital trail in their wake. Preferences are also tracked from online questionnaires and by listening to passenger comments and feedback on social media. So don’t be surprised if, in the near future, crew have an idea of your musical tastes.

There are some things that smart technology will never replace. On Jill and Jeremy Joseph’s flight back from Nice, the pilot intermittently related the goal tally of the Liverpool versus Sevilla match as the Europa League final progressed. In an age where the pilots are locked behind the cockpit door, “it’s always nice to hear from the captain”, says Jill, who appreciates that “pilots seem to have that mastery of understatement”.

Let’s hope that’s one thing that doesn’t change.

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