You’ve already seen our scoop on British Airways concept for its next generation of Club World business class seats, due for the Airbus A350 and potentially other members of the BA fleet.
That report was laden with drawings from BA’s UK patent application – but now we’ve gone one better, with photos from a companion Request for Grant of a Patent document (GB1400219.0).
These show an assortment of mock-ups of the Club World concept which match the earlier drawings.
To recap: BA’s patent reveals a herringbone-style layout which gives each passenger direct aisle access plus an oversized seat that’s closer to a one-person couch.
In fact, BA’s mock-up artwork calls it a sofa rather than a seat, and we wouldn’t be surprised if the final product – should this design come to fruition – was marketed as the Club World Suite.
Right away you can see how the sofa curves around in a manner that’s unlike any business class seat in the air today.
Passengers would adopt a forward-facing position for the taxi, take-off and landing stages of the flight. Note how the video screen faces the passenger so that movies can be viewed on a ‘gate to gate’ basis.
Swivel around in the seat and swing out the dining table when it’s time to get to work…
… or when it’s time to eat.
The middle seats in this 1-2-1 arrangement can be used for shared dining if you’re travelling with a friend.
An infill section of the sofa swings up to create a continuous surface between the seat and the ottoman so you can stretch out…
… or grab some shut-eye.
A draw slides out from under the ottoman where you can stow personal items such as smartphones, tablets, laptops, wallets, amenity kits and perhaps even a small purse.
Australian Business Traveller
New Club World seat for Airbus A350?
