Cathay Pacific’s inflight entertainment (IFE) system has been recognised in two of the world’s most prestigious design awards: the German Design Award 2025 and the Red Dot Award 2024. The Hong Kong-based airline has been named a Gold winner in the ‘Excellent Communications Design – Interactive User Experience’ category of the German Design Award, and a winner of the ‘Brands & Communication Design – User Interface Design’ category of the Red Dot Award.
The IFE system interface has been designed for visual appeal, intuitive user interaction, and accessibility. Features include ‘My Journey’, which seamlessly blends flight tracking with inflight entertainment by incorporating real-time flight paths and map layers to create a game-like flight path preview. Customers can also pair their Bluetooth-enabled headphones to the 4K ultra-high-definition screens.
The system also gives users control over their travel environment by integrating cabin technology with the seats. For example, in the new Aria Suite business-class seat onboard the airline’s retrofitted Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, customers can tailor their space to their needs using the interactive seat controls on the in-seat entertainment touchscreen, where pre-set seat modes such as Relax, Work and Sleep are available. The seat control interface, designed in collaboration with Reaktor and JPA Design, also features a live update of lavatory availability, enabling customers to see which lavatory is unoccupied without having to leave their seats.
The jury of the German Design Award praised the consistency and user-friendliness of the airline’s IFE system, which weaves seamlessly into the entire cabin and enables a high degree of interactivity. Meanwhile, the Red Dot Award panel recognised the ease of use, minimalist user interface and customisation options of the interface.
Vivian Lo, Cathay Pacific’s general manager customer experience and design said of the awards: “At the core of our IFE that we developed together with Reaktor is a thoughtful, human-centric design, underpinned by innovation, customer comfort, and an intuitive graphical user interface. With these recognitions, we hope to continue to lead the charge for the industry and beyond as we strive to push the envelope of customer experience.”
Michael Holler, VP of Reaktor added: “The innovative IFE user experience/user interface that Reaktor has designed and developed together with Cathay Pacific is truly state-of-the-art, seamlessly incorporating the latest technology with a design that is elegant and intuitive to use. For it to be recognised by two of the design world’s most prestigious awards is a remarkable achievement and one that we are honoured to have been a part of.”
The system is also shortlisted for the Passenger Comfort category of the 2025 Crystal Cabin Awards, which will be announced in April.
