HARMONDSWORTH, England,
January 20, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --
British Airway's customers flying on a recent Boston flight were the first to experience the
airline's very latest seats and cabins following the first complete
refit of one of BA's Boeing 777-200s.
The aircraft was the first of 18 to be fitted with British
Airways' recently launched First cabin, new World Traveller and
World Traveller Plus cabins and the airline's latest Thales
in-flight entertainment system.
The multi-million pound refurbishment gives the 18 Boeing
777-200s the same contemporary interiors as British Airways' six
brand new Boeing 777-300ERs.
Frank van der Post, British
Airways' managing director of brands and customer experience, said:
"This exciting and ambitious refit now brings our 777s right up to
date, with new interiors and the very latest inflight entertainment
system.
"We have had fantastic customer reaction to our new fleet of
Boeing 777-300ERs, which originally showcased our new cabins, and
we know those who travel on these 18 aircraft will be equally
impressed with our investment.
"Customers will be able to enjoy the very best travel experience
British Airways has to offer, with more comfortable seats and
brighter, more contemporary cabins."
Over the next five years British Airways will be investing more
than £5bn in new aircraft, smarter cabins, elegant lounges, and new
technologies to make life more comfortable in the air and on the
ground.
It takes British Airways' Cardiff-based engineers, at the airline's
Welsh maintenance base, approximately a month, or 5,700 man hours,
to carefully remove a 777's old seats and interiors and replace
them with the airline's very latest cabins.
Each aircraft will also have a staggering 13 kilometres of
wiring removed and new fibre optic cables installed to power the
new in-flight entertainment system.
New widescreens will be fitted in Club World and customers
flying on these refitted Boeing 777-200s will also be able to
experience the airline's sophisticated new First cabin.
New seats and cabins in World Traveller Plus and World
Traveller, feature the latest cushioning technology and in-seat
power sockets.
The Thales in-flight entertainment system offers over 700 hours
of movies, TV and music options on demand; that's more than 230 TV
programmes, 70 films and 400 CDs, providing customers with 50 per
cent more choice on movies and doubling the range of TV and music
options, as well as plug and play technology.
Each cabin also gets bigger, high-resolution widescreens:
customers in World Traveller will be able to watch TV and films on
35 per cent larger video touchscreens (now 8.9 inches); in World
Traveller Plus they are 60 per cent larger (now 10.6 inches); Club
World widescreens increase by 16.3 per cent (now 12.1 inches) while
the new First screens increase by 275 per cent (now 15.4
inches)
About British Airways:
British Airways plc offers a wide range of worldwide
destinations, including holidays in Brussels, Maldives holidays,
holidays in Boston, Venice holidays and Orlando holidays, as well
as hotels, car rental with Avis and experiences. Customers can save
time and money with ba.com when booking ATOL protected holiday
packages, ATOL number is 5985. Passengers are offered added peace
of mind to their holiday plans and the security of travelling with
British Airways. British Airways plc constantly seeks to exceed
customers' expectations, both in terms of the value for money and
quality of the service provided.
Press Contact:
Michael Johnson
Waterside
PO Box 365
Harmondsworth
Middlesex
UB7 0GB
+44(0)2087385100
http://www.ba.com
