British Airways has announced its Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners, the first of which arrives next year, will be fitted with the airline’s next generation First cabin. Frank van der Post, managing director of brands and customer experience, said: “We’re investing billions in new aircraft, smarter cabins, elegant lounges and new technologies to make life more comfortable for our customers. This new First cabin is a part of that.
“First is exceptionally important to the customers that fly in it – they love the service, style and privacy. They have very exacting standards, so what better aircraft to introduce an evolved First cabin than our brand new, state-of-the-art Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner?
“We’ll wait to unveil the details of the new 787 First cabin until the aircraft arrive next year, but suffice to say immense attention has been paid to developing our award winning First cabin, ensuring our signature style is maintained. We’ve also concentrated on the materials and technology used, the space around the seat and the comfort of the bed.”
The airline has 24 787s on order – eight 787-8s and 16 787-9s. Four of the 787-8s have already arrived with the airline.
In April 2013 IAG, British Airways’ parent company, also confirmed it was converting a further 18 existing Boeing 787s options into firm orders, taking the total to 42. The 787-9s will start to arrive with the airline towards the end of 2015.
BA’s current 787-8s offer three cabins – Club World (business), World Traveller Plus (premium economy) and World Traveller (economy). The next variant, the 787-9, will offer four, thanks to the introduction of the new First cabin.
Van der Post, continued: “We introduced an updated First cabin on the A380 when we launched that in September, which offers customers 30 per cent more personal space and 60 per cent more personal stowage and we’re getting great feedback. The new cabin on the 787-9 is a further development, which we think our customers will love. It will feel exceptionally elegant and beautifully British – exactly what our customers ask of us.”
The introduction of new aircraft including the A380s and 787s into the fleet is already allowing the airline to start flying to new destinations, such as Austin, and increase frequencies in existing markets such as Chengdu, which benefits from more flights in Summer 2014.
The 787 offers huge benefits to British Airways customers – including a whisper-quiet cabin pressurised 2,000ft lower than other aircraft (6,000ft), allowing customers to arrive at their destination feeling more refreshed and less jet-lagged.
The 787 is also extremely fuel-efficient – burning 20 per cent less fuel than the aircraft it replaces.