SAS rolls out cabin design for new A330s and long-haul fleet

Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) has rolled out a new cabin design, IFE and connectivity products to coincide with its taking delivery of new Airbus A330-300s, for which it is the first European operator of the 242-tonne version.

SAS executives walked journalists through the new interior design and the reasons behind their choices at the APEX Expo in Portland, Oregon, this week.

In the business-class cabin, SAS has selected Thomson Vantage XL lie-flat seats in a 1-2-1 configuration.

The aircraft also have a large economy plus cabin with 56 seats with 19-inch width, 38-inch pitch, a larger armrest partition between seats and a footrest.

A breathable wool mix was selected for economy seats, which feature several adjustable points.

LED-based mood lighting is in all cabins and, according to SAS head of concept design Gustaf Oholm, an important factor in well-being. “We did a lot of research into passenger pain points so we could learn how to enhance sleep, improve the boarding process and reduce jetlag. We wanted to be subtle and to mimic the sunrise and sunset that are important in Nordic culture,” he said.

Premium-economy passengers, along with business and premium loyalty program members, get free onboard connectivity. The airline uses Panasonic’s Global Communications Suite and Zodiac’s RAVE lite IFE system.

The SAS executives said there is a very high uptake of its connectivity options of 90-100% in the premium cabins. The airline is doing a study at how to add connectivity to its short-haul flights, but wants to get the costs right, they said.

The airline recently took delivery of its first of four new A330-300s. It also has 30 A320neos and eight A350-900s on order; the cabins of the A350s will follow the design of the A330s and that design is also being retrofitted to the carrier’s seven A340s, which will be phased out as the A350s enter service from 2018.

SAS manager connectivity and entertainment Gunilla El Mekki said the airline has formed a focus group that will take the A330 cabin design features and further enhance them for the A350. But she said it was important not to get “too trendy,” but to maintain a natural and simple design that uses woods and Scandinavian elegance.

This year and in 2016 the airline is introducing five new long-haul routes—Stockholm-Hong Kong; Stockholm-Los Angeles; Copenhagen-Miami; and Oslo-Miami.