No matter what any airline tells says at the end of the day more seats equal more profit.
As Airbus continually tells its airline customers, fewer seats mean wasted space and this in turn equates to less revenue.
At this week’s trade event in Hamburg Airbus how airlines can increase premium seating on either existing or newly ordered A380s.
It also revealed that Australia’s Qantas will be the launch customer for Airbus’ A380 ‘Cabin-Flex’ option.
What is Cabin-Flex?
According to Airbus this so-called ‘cabin enabler’ consists of a new cabin door arrangement on the A380’s upper deck where almost all A380 airlines locate their premium cabins.
It will enable Qantas to retrofit its existing A380s so that they can provide either 11 more premium economy or seven business class seats.
Airbus says “the additional seats will allow airlines to gain revenue-earning floor space for extra seating without compromising on passenger comfort.”
Qantas has chosen to become the launch customer of the A380 Cabin-Flex arrangement on its current fleet from mid-2019.
Airbus’ A380 sales have more or less stalled hence the need to make the super-jumbo a more attractive option to existing or new customers.
In previous years Airbus has touted different economy class configurations including a tight 11-across layout on the lower deck. But so far no airline has taken up that offer.
