2023-07-15 03:15:00
Alejandro Nunez Vicente (left) designed the two-level ‘chaise longue’ seat. In the center is CNN Travel’s Francesca Street/1OFF Media.
2023.07.15 Sat posted at 12:15 JST
Hamburg, Germany (CNN) How about a seat directly below other passengers on a plane?
It may not sound all that glamorous on paper, but airline seat designer Alejandro Nunez Vicente, 23, believes the bunk seat is the future of economy class. there is
You may have seen photos of Nunez Vicente’s chaise longue cabin seat prototype floating around the internet. Nunez Vicente’s concept quickly spread after an exclusive interview with CNN Travel last year.
Nunez Vicente’s bunk seat concept began as a university project in 2021. The concept came into the limelight in 2021 when it was nominated for one of the airline industry’s top awards, the Crystal Cabin Award. Mr. Nunez Vicente interrupted his master’s program and devoted all his time, money and effort to realizing his own vision.
Fast forward to Nunez Vicente, who now has a number of sponsors, several partnership deals and regular meetings with aviation “big guys”.
Comfort and cabin capacity
Those who might use the seats as passengers in the future were skeptical that they would experience claustrophobia, and critics said the seat design was only intended to help airlines create more seats on board. He claims the purpose is to make it possible to cram. But Nunez Vicente said they misunderstood his intentions.
First, Nunez Vicente isn’t trying to get rid of traditional airplane seats entirely. He envisions an aircraft cabin with a chaise longue seat in the middle and traditional seats on either side.
Lower seats allow you to extend your legs onto the stool in front
Nunez Vicente knows the chaise long seat isn’t for everyone, or even preferred, but it may be more comfortable than a traditional seat for some passengers. I don’t think so.
Nunez Vicente, who stands at 1.88 meters tall, has repeatedly struggled with cramped cabins, cramped legroom and sleeplessness. Nunez Vicente argues that he designed the chaise longue seat to solve the problems surrounding aircraft seating, not to make the current situation worse.
However, Nunez Vicente acknowledges that the appeal of chaise long seats to airlines is that they allow more passengers, and while that is not the seat’s priority or purpose, the design does He says it is possible to increase the number.
Many airline executives will experience Nunez Vicente’s latest prototype at this year’s AIX trade fair for aircraft interiors in Hamburg, Germany.
Nunez Vicente says he’s always looking forward to feedback from the airline industry, but he’s also eager to hear from regular travelers who may use the seats in the future.
Chaiselong seats can now be experienced in the virtual ‘Metaverse’ to see what the seats would look like once they were actually placed in the cabin. The user can also walk around the seat in the virtual space and inspect it.
But Nunez Vicente wants everyone to experience the chaiselong seat prototype first hand and offer their honest opinion.
Impressions of actually sitting
At AIX 2023, CNN Travel got a first look at the latest prototype of the Chaiselong Seat. My initial impression is that it’s slightly more “realistic” than last year’s proof of concept. The prototype has four rows of seats, two in the upper row and two in the lower row. It’s an upcycled version of a 1995 aircraft seat, but it actually reclines, so it’s easy to imagine how a chaise longue seat would work on a real plane.
The new design maintains the same basic two-stage concept with some minor modifications. For example, previously there was an unstable ladder-like staircase leading to the upper seat, but it has been changed to a more robust staircase. In addition, lower luggage can now be stowed under the seat in front of you. Additionally, the idea is that in-flight entertainment will be enjoyed on the passenger’s own device, rather than on a built-in screen.
Nunez Vicente also said that the space around the upper seat legs has been improved, and the author also feels that it is quite wide. In addition, since there is no one directly behind me at the same height, it is a great advantage to be able to recline the backrest of the seat quite far back.
Previous version published at AIX 2022/Francesca Street/CNN
The design could also accommodate more passengers, but Nunez Vicente says the goal is passenger comfort.
Nunez Vicente also added beams above the upper seats to show how high the actual cabin ceiling is. I’m 1.78 meters tall, but he feels he has plenty of space. But it’s hard to imagine what it would be like to be closer to the ceiling than to the floor in a real cabin.
As for the lower seats, it feels very cramped for people like me who don’t like small spaces, but this is just a matter of personal opinion. Sure, having a row of seats in front of you won’t appeal to anyone, but some people won’t mind it too much. Especially considering that chaise long seats offer much more legroom than regular economy class seats.
As with last year, my conclusion is that this seat could be an effective solution for travelers who want to stay in bed for the entire flight.
Also, it feels a bit cramped to sit three people in each of the upper and lower seats, but the competition for elbow space is exactly the same as in conventional economy class.
The lower seats fold down like theater seats when not in use. As a result, the lower seats are slightly more convenient and can accommodate passengers in wheelchairs, but the upper seats are not accessible to people with limited mobility, Nunez Vicente said.
The future of air travel
Several airlines are interested in the chaise long seats, says Nunez Vicente, but that doesn’t mean the idea will ever come to fruition.
Nunez Vicente is also acutely aware that airlines in general are not interested in investing in economy class. Innovation usually happens in business or first class, although there are exceptions like Air New Zealand’s new Skynest economy class.
Still, Nunez Vicente believes the two-level seat could eventually be adapted to any aircraft cabin class.
“In the end, by introducing two-level seats, we can make the most of the space,” says Nunez Vicente.
Experience an improved version of an aircraft’s bunk seat
1689402880
#Twolevel #aircraft #seat #improved #version #coming #CNN #reporter #experiences #CNN.co.jp