The latest step in Thai Airways’ design evolution has been revealed with its new B777-300ER cabins. The aircraft – named Achara Sopit – is the first of six on order, configured with 348 seats: 42 in business and 306 in economy.
The cabins also mark the second project carried out with design consultancy Priestmangoode, the first being the first-class cabins in the airline’s new B747s, which marked the beginning of a united cabin vision to be deployed across the airline’s fleet. Named the ‘Thai Contemporary Concept’, the plan aims to bring a more contemporary feel, improved onboard product, and a more consistent experience across the fleet.
In the new B777 business class, gone is the overwhelmingly purple palette of old, replaced with much more subtle shades for the seat shells, cushions and antimacassars, with the bolder, deeper tones reserved for the seat fabrics, footwells, and the leather headrests and armrests. The redesigned fully-flat Sogerma Solstys seat retains the signature colours of Thai Airways, but applies them in a more contemporary and international style. Another Thai design element – wood – has also been carried into the new cabins, but with more contemporary finishes and a more modern slatted effect – including the sliding privacy panels between the seats.
In economy, the seat fabrics have been made more consistent than the outgoing design, replacing the mixture of pink and purple seats with a patterned purple fabric. To provide variation, the centre triples have purple headrests, while the outer pairs have orange headrests. Further visual interest is created by a new sketch-style interpretation of the Thai orchid, and a Thai-style fabric effect in the brand panels. The seats also offer a 32in pitch and eX2 IFE displayed on 10.6in displays.
