Acro Aircraft Seating has been selected by Etihad Airways to supply its Series 6 Economy Class seat for retrofit on the airline’s Airbus A320 and A321 aircraft as part of upgrades to its narrowbody fleet.
Etihad is progressively upgrading its narrowbody fleet of A320 and A321 aircraft and Acro’s Series 6 seats are to be retrofitted on 23 of the aircraft and are expected to enter service in May 2019.
Acro’s Series 6 seat incorporates the company’s Extra-spatial design, a fully composite seatback curve which provides living space at the passenger’s knee level to enhance comfort. Acro has been working closely with Etihad to develop a customised version of Series 6 that includes a personal electronic device (PED) holder, upper and lower literature pockets, fast charging USB provisioning, headrest, bespoke fabric seat covers and backrest cushions.
“Etihad came to Acro with an exacting brief which challenged us to come up with a range of bespoke features and the result is a seat which provides a variety of functionality that will enhance the passenger experience,” explained Alan McInnes, Acro’s SVP Sales. “For example, the seat has been cleverly designed around the passenger’s digital devices with the fast-charging USB ports and a PED holder which adjusts to hold a phone or tablet devices. Furthermore, the seats feel significantly more spacious due to the unique curved seat back design that Acro’s seats are renowned for.”
In a row of seats, the centre seat also offers passengers with more living space as it is an inch wider than the window and aisle seats.
Etihad plans to operate its upgraded A320 and A321 aircraft on short-haul regional services and to gateways within five hours of flight from Abu Dhabi.
