Floating furniture, noise-canceling seats: Is this the future of air travel?
The shortlist for the Crystal Cabin Awards 2022, have been announced, treating us to a glimpse at the next-gen world of air travel.
Hailed by organizers as "a creative playfield where designers, engineers and visionaries come together to plan the future of the airplane passenger experience," it's even more reason to keep saving those points for future trips where some of these gadgets and inflight gizmos may one day be rolled out.
Spanning eight categories, the innovative concepts and cabin designs aren't just about comfort and creating sci-fi-like future projections. They also tackle the many challenges of tomorrow. Areas such as sustainability and the continued threat of COVID-19 are all addressed, with nominees including major aerospace firms, boutique design studios and even bold students looking to make a mark of their own.
Related: 5 simple tech innovations that would revolutionize the travel experience
Here are some of the designs that piqued our interest…
Floating furniture
Since the dawn of commercial air travel, designers have strived for ways to maximize cabin space while juggling comfort, profit and increasingly bolt-tight safety restrictions. It's not an easy task, but design studio Teague and component manufacturer NORDAM have seemingly surpassed themselves with this "floating furniture" collaboration, which brings wide-body comfort to the single-aisle business class in left-field fashion.
Dubbed Elevate, and aiming to increase space for passengers, all seating and fixtures are connected to the sidewall and aisle as opposed to the floor. We can imagine that after boarding this beautiful cabin, the only thing left on the floor will be your jaw.
Related: Could this coffee shop seat design make business travel more productive?
Another idea with the potential to change the way we sit on planes is from Jiayi Yu, a student at Reutlingen University. Yu's swivel seat design -- known as Shift Cabin Interior (seen above) -- allows formerly fixed seats to be arranged in a variety of positions, be it for business or relaxing in the skies, providing airlines with another way of increasing the number of passengers without making them feel squeezed.
Noise-canceling seats
If you're still left in awe at the power of noise-canceling headphones during flights, you'll appreciate this idea from ACM Aircraft Cabin Modification's MYZONE, which effectively turns your entire seat into an active noise cancelation (ANC) pod, embedding said tech behind your headrest.
It's supposedly compatible with any airline seat, and the team behind it says the system can also use window panels to achieve a 3 dB reduction in airplane noise by releasing conflicting sound waves that effectively neutralize the offending ones.
Related: The next generation of inflight noise canceling has no headphones
Invisible Covid shield
Given the brutal impact of COVID-19 on the travel industry, it should be no surprise that the design world is responding to the challenges with real verve. None more so than Teague, which makes this year's shortlist for a second time thanks to AirShield, an ingenious device that creates an invisible shield comprised of air around passengers.
Working with Pexco Aerospace, Teague's design attaches to an existing PSU rail to direct airflow above passengers and lessens their chance of catching anything nasty. It's sort of like a steroid-pumped version of the current HEPA filters on board flights.
Related: Face masks on flights could be here for years to come, according to experts
Not a million (air)miles away from Airshield is a sophisticated clean air system from Weigele Aerospace, Vientum, which utilizes existing clean air technologies used in school classrooms post COVID-19 and applies them to the airplane cabin space. An ultra-realistic way of making the skies safer for tomorrow.
Related: First look: Delta's snazzy new first-class recliners that are raising the bar
Smart safety
The list of things that can go wrong with faulty electronics resulting in mid-air fire is long. With this in mind, Safran Cabin developed the Fire-Resistant Cargo Container, which can inhibit Category D fires for six hours, giving the pilots precious additional time to land safely.
Caeli Nova made the shortlist thanks to the Cordillera emergency oxygenation system, which uses patented breathing technology to allow an airplane to divert at a higher altitude to a suitable airport following a decompression event. As well as lowering the risk of a major accident, it could also improve sustainability -- its creators claim the system would save 1.2 million tons of CO2 emissions annually should it receive a global rollout.
Sustainable solutions
The Cordillera isn't the only device blowing away the competition in the eco-stakes. Other sustainable ideas nominated included a recycling system for worn airplane seat cushions (courtesy of cushion maker Metzo and manufacturer The Vita), and RECARO Airplane Seating, shortlisted for a modular, lightweight plug-in seat table system that could reduce airplane weight and save 1,000 tons of CO₂ for every 50 airplanes.
Onboard projection
Want to embrace your inner Bond villain when you fly privately? How better than looking out into your own simulated shark tank? With the Explorer Concept, Lufthansa Technik wants to give private jet passengers control of their surroundings courtesy of an internal projector system that allows the cabin ceiling and walls to be covered with incredible projections -- including underwater habitats if they so choose.
Real time shopping
Capitalizing on the rise of e-commerce in every other walk of life, is it any surprise it's slowly making its way onto long-haul flights as well? In collaboration with Airfree and Thales, Singapore Airlines has already rolled out KrisShop, the world's first inflight shopping experience and suitably finds itself among the Crystal Cabin nominees.
Running on the airline's in-flight entertainment system, it allows passengers to shop in real-time using a credit card. Passengers can arrange a delivery to their home or even mid-route. It's ideal if you're the type of traveler who regularly forgets something important and needs to buy at your destination.
AI and biometric personalization
One to watch in every sense of the word, tech company Gentex Corporation is nominated for their mission to fuse a camera-based iris biometric scanning system with in-flight entertainment. The innovation gives passengers instant access to their travel information, entertainment accounts and other preferences.
It's already working on similar tech for the automotive world where drivers can increase security, personalization and even authorize in-vehicle payments. So, there's no reason it couldn't apply to the skies.
Elsewhere, evoking HAL 9000 with a chef's hat, Airbus Operations' AI-based Airspace Food Scanner is designed to capture data about passengers' onboard food consumption. The system provides airlines the opportunity to better cater to your taste and moderate your eating habits.
Intrigued by the nominees and want to dig a bit deeper? Visit the official Crystal Cabin Awards website for more information. The 2022 awards will be held in Hamburg to coincide with the Aircraft Interiors Expo on June 14.
TPG featured card
at American Express's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 5X | New! Earn 5X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotel stays booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App. |
| 3X | Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked through AmexTravel.com, the Amex Travel App, or purchased directly from airlines. |
| 2X | Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid car rentals booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App and cruises booked and paid through AmexTravel.com. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases. |
Pros
- Valuable dining and food-related credits
- Flexible rewards with airline and hotel transfer partners
- Multiple travel and purchase protections
- No foreign transaction fees
- Access to Amex Offers for additional savings (enrollment required)
Cons
- Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
- Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
- You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- New! Earn 5X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotel stays booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App.
- Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked through AmexTravel.com, the Amex Travel App, or purchased directly from airlines.
- Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid car rentals booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App and cruises booked and paid through AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
- Pay It® lets you tap in the American Express® App to quickly pay for small purchase amounts throughout the month and still earn rewards the way you usually do. Plan It® gives you the option to split up big purchases into equal monthly payments with a fixed fee. You’ll know upfront exactly how much you’ll pay.
- Updated! $120 Dining Credit: Earn up to a total of $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the Gold Card at Grubhub (including Seamless), Buffalo Wild Wings, Five Guys, The Cheesecake Factory, and Wonder. This can be an annual savings of up to $120. Enrollment required.
- $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year at over 10,000 qualifying U.S. Resy restaurants after you pay for eligible purchases with the American Express® Gold Card. That’s up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
- $84 Dunkin' Credit: Earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin’ locations. Enrollment required.
- $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Enjoy up to $120 in Uber Cash annually with your Gold Card. Just add your Card to your Uber account and you'll get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an Amex Card for your transaction.
- New! As an American Express® Gold Card Member, you can enjoy complimentary Hertz Five Star® Status. Enjoy benefits like skipping the counter at select locations, adding an additional driver at no additional cost*, and vehicle upgrades**. Benefit enrollment and Hertz Gold+ registration are required. *Additional drivers must meet standard rental qualifications and must be a spouse or domestic partner to qualify as complimentary. Other additional drivers subject to fees. **Benefits are subject to availability and vary by location. Additional Hertz program Terms and Conditions including age restrictions apply.
- Take advantage of a $100 credit towards eligible charges* at over 1,300 upscale hotels worldwide when you book The Hotel Collection through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App **. *Eligible charges vary by property. **The Hotel Collection requires a two-night minimum stay.
- Book your travel through the Amex Travel App with added peace of mind – backed by American Express® service and support. Only for American Express® Card Members.
- Whenever you need us, we're here. Our Member Services team will ensure you are taken care of. From lost Card replacement to statement questions, we are available to help 24/7.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- Annual Fee is $325.
- Terms Apply.