IN THE AIR ➔ AF gets back to business
discreet ambience, lending a more light-filled dimension to the cabin and enhancing customers’ comfort.“ The airline has also reviewed
AIR FRANCE has revealed a series of upgrades to its long haul Business Class product, with a new-look seat and dining service on the list of improvements. The redesigned business
class seat is of the fixed-shell design and converts to a lie-flat bed measuring over two metres in length. It has a new fixed foot rest and storage space, simpler controls and a
SIA GETS CONNECTED
SINGAPORE Airlines will offer onboard connectivity including email and SMS from the first half of 2011. Using provider OnAir, the airline will give passengers access to wifi internet and mobile phone services including the sending and receiving of text messages and emails, as well as the ability to make and receive phone calls via smartphones and BlackBerry devices. The services will be intro- duced progressively on the airline’s Airbus A380 and A340-500s and Boeing 777-300ER aircraft. Mobile phone services will be charged through the passenger's network provider at their standard roaming rates, while wifi internet access is available through an access package once logged on.
15-inch entertainment screen. The airline will begin intro- ducing its the new seat by the end of the year and will have over 20 aircraft equipped with the new product by summer 2011, and by 2013 over 40 Air France aircraft – A330s, B777s and A380s – will be equipped with the new configuration. Air France says the redesigned business class seats “create a
its business class inflight catering service in recent months, with a view to offering a more varied choice and a higher-class of restaurant-style dishes. The carrier will offer a series of brand new dishes and renew its menus more frequently as a result. Air France has also introduced a wider range of well-being products and services at its airport lounges. Christian Herzog, senior vice president of marketing at Air France-KLM says, “During the air transport crisis, Air France chose to pursue its investment strategy in its business class offer. This ambition currently allows us to offer our customers a more comfortable trip thanks to improved services and optimum peace of mind.”
KOREAN AIR AWAITS A380s
Five minutes with... Adam White
PROFILE
Managing Director BAXTER HOARE TRAVEL LTD
Adam's role is to lead and develop Baxter Hoare’s businesses and its people for the benefit of its customers, staff and shareholders. Prior to leading the purchase of Baxter Hoare he was managing director of Bath Business Travel and before that Business Travel Management (BTM). He has spent 31 years in the travel business.
What is your most memorable business travel trip and why? Probably going to Moscow on behalf of the Radius Board. It’s a fantastic city and full of surprises. Having been told that the hotel butler was on their way up I answered the knock at my hotel bedroom door in just a small towel – having just stepped out of the shower – only to find one of the most gorgeous girls I have every met standing there in a pristine, white butler's outfit. I’ve learned never to assume since then!
What is your worst business travel experience and why? Arriving into to Sao Paulo. The non-stop flight took 15 and a half hours so my relief at getting off was palpable. However I did not expect that the five mile transfer to the hotel would take four hours in the worst traffic I have every seen. The cab with no air conditioning and the poverty on all sides was shocking even for someone born in India. Had it not been too dangerous I’d have got out and walked.
What is your favourite destination worldwide and why? Without question it has to be New Zealand. For stunning natural beauty and wildlife it cannot, in my experience, be matched. It remains the only place where I have skied in the morning and sunbathed on the beach in the afternoon.
KOREAN AIR has unveiled its onboard product for its line of ten new Airbus A380s as it prepared to become the sixth airline to introduce the aircraft. The airline's first A380 is scheduled to be delivered in May 2011 and will feature between 400 and 450 seats in its configuration – fewer than any other airline's A380. The layout is designed to maximise cabin space and house new facilities such as an onboard Premium Lounge. The next generation premium seats that
are currently installed on its mid- and long-haul flights will also be installed in the A380 cabin, namely the First Class Kosmo Suites and flatbed Prestige Sleeper seats. The rear cabin will feature ergonomically- designed ‘New Economy’ seats. Korean Air is due to take delivery of five A380s by the end of 2011 – and a further five by 2014 – and the carrier has lined up its superjumbos to begin serving its European and North American destinations by August next year.
What single thing could be done to improve your business travelling life? A third runway at London Heathrow airport so we could all stop flying around in circles, wasting time and burning fuel in unnecessary holding patterns while we're waiting to land.
What destinations would you like to visit next and why? Vietnam. I have heard great things about its natural beauty and unspoiled culture. I also want to discover more of Asia, South America and Africa. The latter because it remains my favourite continent.
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