A designer’s view of the value of smart design thinking in aircraft interiors

One of our designers, Matt Willox was recently lucky enough to escape the British Winter and take a holiday in Australia. Always on the lookout for good design, here is his account of his journey and how thoughtful design can help in small but significant ways...

'Getting to Australia was going to take two flights with a potentially leg-numbing total of 21 hours sitting in economy - a very daunting prospect for someone over 6 feet. However, it was all made slightly more bearable as I was flying on an Airbus A380, with the cabin interior created by the celebrated industrial designer Marc Newson.

You can tell Newson has spent a lot of time on a plane. All the normal annoyances, where something could have easily been done so much better, have been designed much more intelligently and sympathetically. In interviews, Newson has said that he wanted to "restore the glamour to flying". I would say he has succeeded.

The first thing I noticed on entering the cabin was the colour scheme of calming beige and muted, earthy tones. They set the mood and made it easier to relax and get some rest. No vivid orange here.

When I took my seat I noticed that I had a bit more legroom than in most economy sections - the seats use thinner, ‘high-tech’ foam for cushioning to give you more space in a footprint that is actually smaller than previously, allowing the airline to squeeze in more passengers. Less foam also means less weight to carry, meaning the airline is that much more efficient with their fuel. All these benefits come from simple but clever thinking on material choice.

Reclining the seat also moves the base forward - allowing you to lean back in less space, a benefit to the person behind you as well. The plastic shell of the seat has a pattern reminiscent of carbon fibre, giving the impression of much higher quality materials. 

These and many more simple little touches add up to make the experience that much better: the wine glasses were made of glass, the cutlery was plastic but not disposable, instead it was solid and sharp - the knives actually cut! The headrest folded up to give you something to lean your head against. Even the layout of the elastic netting has been re-thought.

The only upset was with the storage of the handset used to control the entertainment system, concealed under a hinged cover on the left armrest. In many ways this is a great place for it - it's not exposed or liable to accidental button presses as you shift about to keep the feeling in your legs (inevitable, even with the special cushioning). However, the drawback of the hinged cover soon became evident when the passenger next to me fell asleep with his arm on the armrest, leaving me unable to watch "The Departed" unless I woke him up to move it…'

Design can help to satisfy customers and even delight them. At Design Futures we always make sure we build ‘a users point of view’ into our projects to ensure that what we do creates happy users – and that makes good business sense for our clients.