James Park flies high with Japan Airlines brief

Japan Airlines is launching a new first class airline suite designed by James Park Associates.


Japan Airlines is launching a new first class airline suite designed by James Park Associates.


The designs will be introduced on the Boeing 777-300ER Tokyo to New York route in August, and on the Tokyo to San Francisco route in September.


The designs are about ‘subtly progressing seats by enabling easier access to aisles for users,’ says JPA managing director James Park.


Design features include added padding in the arm rests and a large 79cm long by 38cm wide table, which aims to provide enough space for passenger movement and allow passengers to push the table away without having to take the contents off.


The seats, which are covered in grey suede, are made from composites such as carbon fibre to make them more lightweight, says JPA senior designer Ben Orson. An estimated 65 per cent of materials used in the seats’ manufacture are recyclable.


He continues that the design process took into account the minutiae of aircraft design – headrests normally protrude slightly when chairs are lowered – but JPA designers have created headrests that lie completely flat.


Orson says that a series of product tests were carried out in the seats’ development. These looked at the placement of the control panels and led to the seat partitions being made higher so that passengers cannot see the adjacent passenger’s TV screen.


JPA was appointed to carry out the work 18 months ago, says Orson, after the interior and product design consultancy completed redesigns for Singapore Airlines.

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