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Love the first paragraph. 
They seem to have slightly tweaked the A380 products from what they proposed a couple of years ago, and a shame they are reducing the 34" pitch in Y.
But, presuming they won't make themselves looks like idiots by launching it with a punch line beyond parody that they quietly later drop, and price it realistically, it looks like it could be a winner. I reserve judgement on those colours until I see them though....
Pictures in the Bangkok Post link.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/...-starting-2012
They seem to have slightly tweaked the A380 products from what they proposed a couple of years ago, and a shame they are reducing the 34" pitch in Y.
But, presuming they won't make themselves looks like idiots by launching it with a punch line beyond parody that they quietly later drop, and price it realistically, it looks like it could be a winner. I reserve judgement on those colours until I see them though....
Pictures in the Bangkok Post link.
Passengers flying Thai Airways International (THAI) starting in 2012 may be forgiven for thinking they are flying with Singapore Airlines or Emirates Airlines instead.
Semi-private suites in first class, flat-bed seats in business and television screens for each economy class seats - in-flight features that passengers of the world's leading airlines have taken for granted for quite some time now - will become THAI's new hallmark.
The flag carrier is spending billions of US dollars on a radical makeover of its seats, in-flight entertainment and other passenger amenities as it tries to play catch-up with the competition.
THAI executives admit the airline's current in-flight products that many passengers joke about such as rolled-up video projector screens hung on the walls are obsolete and turn away many potential travellers.
"The current in-flight products are indeed our weak point. They're inconsistent from aircraft to aircraft, route to route, and they impede our ability to move up the ladder of the world's best," said Rangsiman Mokkhasmit, THAI's director for product development.
The in-flight product revamp, now in progress, will be instrumental to the national carrier's ambitions of entering the top five of the Skytrax rankings and enhancing its appeal in the premium long-haul segment.
THAI ranked ninth in the Airlines of the Year 2010 survey, up from 10th in last year's poll conducted by the British aviation research body.
"Despite not having modern in-flight products, THAI is already among the top 10, so it should not be too difficult to climb up to the top five any time soon," said Mr Rangsiman
THAI last rolled out a cabin upgrade, along with an overall improvement plan, in 2004, but that was based on technology from earlier in the decade due to the long lead time in receiving approval and procurement.
THAI’s new business class is a slightly toned-down version of Emirates’.
The airline lags behind the world's other major airlines, especially the cash-rich Middle East carriers, which have been going the extra mile to lure passengers, particularly premium ones, with the latest offerings while charging the same or even lower fares.
For instance, while other leading airlines now offer full-flat seats and 17-inch TV screen with more than 600 channels of entertainment (in the case of Emirates) in business class on medium- and long-haul routes, THAI's long-haul passengers have to be content with tilted "angled flat" seats and 10- or 15-inch screens with limited entertainment options.
"Even though our new in-flight products are not the latest and do not have any new trend-setting features, they don't really look too bad," said Mr Rangsiman. "Passengers should be pleased."
The plan is in line with THAI's policy of being a "premium service network airline" in the same league with other major carriers including Lufthansa, Asiana Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Singapore Airlines and Emirates.
THAI's new first class will feature full-flat seats in a mini-suite format, largely resembling what Lufthansa offers, with leg rests and seat-back screens of at least 23-inches in size. The new business class seats and arrangement resemble a slightly toned-down version of Emirates', with a minimum 15-inch screen.
Premium cabins will also feature a sharply improved audio-video on demand entertainment system offering up to 100 movies, 150 TV programmes and 500 CDs along with quality noise-cancellation headphones.
These are all a far cry from THAI's current offering of 48 movies, 45 TV programme and 80 CDs.
And featured in the new economy class will be individual TV screens of at least 10 inches in size on the seat backs.
Future premium passengers will soon be able to make on-board calls from their mobiles, access the internet and watch live TV with USB connectivity.
The in-flight product revamp, which will also feature an overall "look and feel of Thainess", will be introduced to not only THAI's new jetliners, but also the existing fleet under a retrofitting programme that may last until 2023.
The package of new features will herald the arrival of a fleet of new wide-body jetliners - six A380-800 superjumbos and seven A330s - to THAI's fleet starting in February 2012. Work has already begun on existing aircraft.
Semi-private suites in first class, flat-bed seats in business and television screens for each economy class seats - in-flight features that passengers of the world's leading airlines have taken for granted for quite some time now - will become THAI's new hallmark.
The flag carrier is spending billions of US dollars on a radical makeover of its seats, in-flight entertainment and other passenger amenities as it tries to play catch-up with the competition.
THAI executives admit the airline's current in-flight products that many passengers joke about such as rolled-up video projector screens hung on the walls are obsolete and turn away many potential travellers.
"The current in-flight products are indeed our weak point. They're inconsistent from aircraft to aircraft, route to route, and they impede our ability to move up the ladder of the world's best," said Rangsiman Mokkhasmit, THAI's director for product development.
The in-flight product revamp, now in progress, will be instrumental to the national carrier's ambitions of entering the top five of the Skytrax rankings and enhancing its appeal in the premium long-haul segment.
THAI ranked ninth in the Airlines of the Year 2010 survey, up from 10th in last year's poll conducted by the British aviation research body.
"Despite not having modern in-flight products, THAI is already among the top 10, so it should not be too difficult to climb up to the top five any time soon," said Mr Rangsiman
THAI last rolled out a cabin upgrade, along with an overall improvement plan, in 2004, but that was based on technology from earlier in the decade due to the long lead time in receiving approval and procurement.
THAI’s new business class is a slightly toned-down version of Emirates’.
The airline lags behind the world's other major airlines, especially the cash-rich Middle East carriers, which have been going the extra mile to lure passengers, particularly premium ones, with the latest offerings while charging the same or even lower fares.
For instance, while other leading airlines now offer full-flat seats and 17-inch TV screen with more than 600 channels of entertainment (in the case of Emirates) in business class on medium- and long-haul routes, THAI's long-haul passengers have to be content with tilted "angled flat" seats and 10- or 15-inch screens with limited entertainment options.
"Even though our new in-flight products are not the latest and do not have any new trend-setting features, they don't really look too bad," said Mr Rangsiman. "Passengers should be pleased."
The plan is in line with THAI's policy of being a "premium service network airline" in the same league with other major carriers including Lufthansa, Asiana Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Singapore Airlines and Emirates.
THAI's new first class will feature full-flat seats in a mini-suite format, largely resembling what Lufthansa offers, with leg rests and seat-back screens of at least 23-inches in size. The new business class seats and arrangement resemble a slightly toned-down version of Emirates', with a minimum 15-inch screen.
Premium cabins will also feature a sharply improved audio-video on demand entertainment system offering up to 100 movies, 150 TV programmes and 500 CDs along with quality noise-cancellation headphones.
These are all a far cry from THAI's current offering of 48 movies, 45 TV programme and 80 CDs.
And featured in the new economy class will be individual TV screens of at least 10 inches in size on the seat backs.
Future premium passengers will soon be able to make on-board calls from their mobiles, access the internet and watch live TV with USB connectivity.
The in-flight product revamp, which will also feature an overall "look and feel of Thainess", will be introduced to not only THAI's new jetliners, but also the existing fleet under a retrofitting programme that may last until 2023.
The package of new features will herald the arrival of a fleet of new wide-body jetliners - six A380-800 superjumbos and seven A330s - to THAI's fleet starting in February 2012. Work has already begun on existing aircraft.
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