Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, unveiled its over the top ultra-luxurious first class called First Apartments which will be offered on its Airbus A380 super-jumbos.
The nine 39 square feet ‘apartments’ which are about 74 percent larger than standard first class suites will be located on the front upper deck and unlike the twin aisles of most airlines, will be placed on either side of a single aisle. They feature a living space with a 30.3 inch reclining lounge chair and an ottoman which converts in to an 80.5 inch long 26 inch wide full-flat bed. Six suites will have a retractable partition which will allow two ‘apartments’ to be joined for guests travelling together.
The First Apartment also features Poltrona Frau leather upholstery which is also used for the interiors of Maserati and Ferrari super-cars, a 24 inch LCD TV screen powered by a Panasonic eX3 IFE AVOD with 750 hours of programming and noise-cancelling headphones built-in magnetic audio jacks to allow for best connections, a chilled mini-bar, personal wardrobe, and a vanity unit with lit make-up mirrors with luxury branded amenities.
The common bathroom will also feature a shower and all premium class passengers will have access to a lounge area called The Lobby which is located between the first and business class cabins.
Etihad offers all its first class passengers on-board chefs who provide personalised dining in a five-star restaurant-style service [bsu_youtube_advanced url=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J9Or-NXKfVc” width=”640″ height=”360″ controls=”alt” autohide=”yes” showinfo=”no” rel=”no” modestbranding=”yes” theme=”light”]
Hmm. Funny. The video has an “Aer Lingus” ad/commercial playing on it in the walk through 🙂
The Residence is a little over the top and it is intended to lure passengers using private jets, unless Etihad can sell it consistently on all flights, it is a waste of expensive real estate. The space may be better used for additional Business Studios. Nevertheless, Etihad has upped the level and standard of comfort for international travel.