A new business class seat concept has just been revealed. It’s nothing ground-breaking, though it looks nice, and I imagine we’ll see it on some airlines soon enough.
In this post:
Airbus’ new business class seat with doors
STELIA Aerospace is a wholly owned subsidiary of Airbus, which manufactures airplane seats. The company has unveiled its new RENDEZ-VOUS staggered business class seat, intended for wide body jets.
As it’s described, this new seating product is one of the widest in the market, and offers:
- 100% direct aisle access for all business class passengers
- A “honeymoon” or “solo” seating option, depending on whether you’re traveling alone or with someone
- A spacious and comfortable fully flat bed, with the option for a double bed in the center section
- A large privacy door, turning the seat into a more private suite
- A full privacy divider in the center section, allowing passengers to work or read while the person in the other seat can rest
STELIA Aerospace describes the seat as being designed like a comfortable and vast sofa, integrating the backrest into the backshell. With this product, travelers are freed of any constraint in terms of position due to headrest or armrests, and can relax as they would in a sofa.
Here’s how Thierry Kanengieser, STELIA Aerospace’s VP of Cabin Interior, describes this new product:
“When you’re travelling far, thousands of miles from home, all you desire is to feel like you would at home. With RENDEZ-VOUS, our brand new Business Class staggered seat presenting a unique sofa seating comfort, airlines can offer their passengers an outstanding travel experience with a perfect ‘at home’ feeling while flying”
No customers have been announced for this new seating product yet, though I imagine that will change soon. Presumably the launch customer will be an airline ordering an Airbus wide body jet.
Admittedly this is a tangent, but am I the only one who is amused by STELIA Aerospace’s use of models for promoting products? Like, in the first picture doesn’t it look like these people are meeting for the first time? And then by the third picture, they’re sleeping together…
My take on this new staggered business class seat
This new product from STELIA Aerospace appears to be more evolutionary than revolutionary. The company already has popular staggered configurations, including the SOLSTYS family of seats. You’ll find this product on many airlines, including Thai Airways A350s, Vietnam Airlines A350s, Iberia A330s, etc.
With this new product it seems like some minor (positive) tweaks were made, and then a door was added to the seat.
Ultimately that’s a perfectly nice improvement, and it’s no different than how we’ve seen Collins Aerospace add a door to reverse herringbone seats, as you’ll find on British Airways A350s and Etihad Airways A350s.
In general these kinds of staggered configurations aren’t going to be the most cutting edge products out there, and personally I don’t rank them as being among the best business class seats. However, I know many people traveling as a couple like the “honeymoon” seats, given how close you can sit to your travel companion. That’s a challenge otherwise with many of the world’s newer business class products.
I’d say the closest current competitor to this new product is Thompson Aero’s VantageXL product with doors, which you’ll find on planes like Delta Air Lines Airbus A350s. The difference is that the center seats aren’t staggered in such a way that you have “honeymoon” seats.
Bottom line
Wholly owned Airbus subsidiary STELIA Aerospace has revealed its new business class seating concept, which will be known as RENDEZ-VOUS. This is essentially an evolution of the company’s staggered configuration, with some positive updates, including the introduction of a door.
While not cutting edge, this looks to me this looks like a pretty solid product, and I’m curious to see what airline will be the launch customer.
What do you make of this new business class seat?
I am not sure that the width of the new suite seat is any wider than the new 'standard' premium economy seats or more comfortable, other than for overnight lie flat flights.
With new PE seat examples like on BA, Singapore, Cathey Pacific and recent KLM PE seat / cabin, they more or less resemble the former business class 'cradle' seat, prior to the new styled suites.
I also much prefer to fly the 'facing'...
I am not sure that the width of the new suite seat is any wider than the new 'standard' premium economy seats or more comfortable, other than for overnight lie flat flights.
With new PE seat examples like on BA, Singapore, Cathey Pacific and recent KLM PE seat / cabin, they more or less resemble the former business class 'cradle' seat, prior to the new styled suites.
I also much prefer to fly the 'facing' direction, since with some business class cabin seats face backwards and not something I've found particularly comfortable.
In addition, the difference between the food and beverage selection quality now and served on china in some cases, is comparable to business in some cases, like ANA, Qantas (and BA prior to Covid-19) when a main course option was offered from the Club World menu. Therefore it brings me to consider for the value price tag, PE especially with enhanced fast track ground services some airlines offer, unless using miles to upgrade to Business or airport offer PE is the perfect cabin for me.
Fantastic... delta get these seats...
For those newer to the game let assist in saving blushes & moments of severe awkwardness.
Unless you normally share a bed, in a home setting, with your seat mate then no matter his/ her smiles, abundance of flirtatious banter and/or bottles of Krug shared - for the love of god please do not suggest the "did you know these can become double beds" and certainly don't wink after saying it.
The general...
For those newer to the game let assist in saving blushes & moments of severe awkwardness.
Unless you normally share a bed, in a home setting, with your seat mate then no matter his/ her smiles, abundance of flirtatious banter and/or bottles of Krug shared - for the love of god please do not suggest the "did you know these can become double beds" and certainly don't wink after saying it.
The general rule in such situations is you can OFFER your number ( rather than ask for theirs) and suggest a drink or dinner another time but inviting strangers to make pillow forts with you at 39,000 ft is considered very bad form
Amateur! Just because you are unattractive doesn't mean that other people who are attractive can't have fun.
If you have the triple-platinum double-black KING-of-the-skies-Mastercard with included frequent-flier-w@nker status, regularly fly in FIRST Class, you are already half the way there. Now skip the mediocre unhealthy food in the US airlines' lounges and only eat the healthy food (e.g. Caviar) in Emirates, Qatar, ... First Class und you become attractive.
@Grandpa Clayton,
The general rule in such situations is simply asking, "Are you on Tinder?"
I like the idea of having the option, because it is very true that it is nice to have the option to sit next to someone you are travelling with. However, even in seat mode, there seems to be almost no separation between the seats and that just seems uncomfortable if you are next to a stranger...
To hell with doors. How big is the footwell?!
Those seats look very uncomfortable,...all look so tight...I don't like it...!!!
It is a French-based company, so who’s to say the couple didn’t just meet and are now sleeping together ;) Being open-minded is fun
I’m excited to see more double bed seat concepts. It allows for the possibility to get a little frisky under the blankets when the lights are out even if you can’t actually fully join the mile high club!
My seat sez that their seat will be painful after some minutes, an hour tops. Ugh. Slimline is a fashion that needs to go, like crinolines, polishing silver tea pots, and bowler hats.
The lack of armrests to me is a real issue, even at home I use cushions if seated on my couch to prop up my arms, I find it very uncomfortable without somewhere to put my arms.
Doors!!! Yessssssss
Wide seats = tiny footwells (in this type of configuration?)
Her smile and body language in the first picture clearly indicate she is displaying excitement to her lover for the beautiful seats. Perhaps your perception that they’re meeting for the first time is due to their different skin tones and your unconscious bias. This should give you the understanding of why people have made human trafficking reports on flights when there are different races between parent and child (which you quite clearly have rallied against...
Her smile and body language in the first picture clearly indicate she is displaying excitement to her lover for the beautiful seats. Perhaps your perception that they’re meeting for the first time is due to their different skin tones and your unconscious bias. This should give you the understanding of why people have made human trafficking reports on flights when there are different races between parent and child (which you quite clearly have rallied against and shamed in the past).
LOLWUT? Way to immediately inject race and bias and f-ing human trafficking into an innocuous comment about staged photos. But keep lecturing people and assuming everyone is still SHOCKED by interracial couples like its the South in the 1940s
"Her smile and body language in the first picture clearly indicate she is displaying excitement to her lover for the beautiful seats."
You obviously have never been in a long term relationship.
However you are right, they are likely couples. But not because of your racist stereotype bias.
Both of them are wearing a ring.
And the only thing this likely couple could be trafficking are the missing headphones.
Your fixation on race is really bizarre. You sound like you need help.
I wonder if airlines are able to lever the 'packaging' of planes and seats from Airbus for a significant price reduction, rather than shopping for seats from a third party.
Those pics including the sequence of models are hilarious! Interesting how these pictures are so much lighter in color/design than any airline actually puts on their product, likely as if an airline used those colors, they would look used/less than fresh v quick
Ben, I think you may become more of a fan of honeymoon seats once Miles is big enough to need his own seat. It's very difficult to entertain a child, help them eat, and check on them at night when you're in reverse-herringbone seats. This is why I love products like this one where you have fully flat beds, and most of the seats are private, but there is a great option for parents traveling with children.
The sleeping photo makes the seat/ bed looks really narrow…. Like he is so squeezed when laying down that he has no choice but to put his arm on top of central divider. I have to imagine average American men will be heavier than this particular male model…
Narrow: this was my immediate impression. And, while the seat material looks sleek, it also looks a little too firm for my old bones.
My immediate impression was I hadn't realized the ultra-slim seating trend had made its way from economy class into the forward cabin. Those seats don't look comfy.
Seems like with every seating “upgrade” they’re making them both thinner more narrow - equally true as premium cabins, they’re just adding doors and HD screens to make it look more palatable.
Love the three pictures with models! The seat apparently fosters intimate relationships at the speed of sound. 1) guess we're sitting next to each other, 2) quiet indifference/doing their own things, 3) cuddling!
LOL, funny thing is that the divider is all the way up on pic #2. It seems there's love in the air after all.
and only in America 4) sexual assault allegation. She said No, He gave her a drink.
@Eskimoo
The only one who appears to have had a drink today is you. LOL