During one of the panel sessions, executives from Russian carrier Aeroflot, Mexico’s VivaAerobus and Icelandic LCC WOW Air were asked what new aircraft technologies they would like to see coming online.
“I would like to see an electric plane,” VivaAerobus CEO Juan Carlos Zuazua replied.
“I certainly would like to see an electric plane,” WOW Air CEO Skuli Mogensen said, “but I think this will take more than a decade, based on past performance. What I would like to see is how we can reconfigure an aircraft more or less in real-time.”
With flexible configurations, airlines could adjust for empty seats to offer passengers more space, which could then be upsold. “I would like to see that and I think it is doable,” Mogensen said.
Aeroflot deputy CEO Giorgio Callegari was also in favor of the idea. He said it would give airlines greater flexibility to operate a standardized fleet, which could be reconfigured by route, minimizing costs.
In a later session, International Airlines Group (IAG) CEO Willie Walsh also stressed the importance of aircraft configurations.
“One of the key things to get right is configuration, so you can maximize the productivity of the aircraft,” he said.
IAG group’s UK carrier British Airways is reconfiguring its Boeing 777s into a denser layout. “I’d say what we’re doing is properly configuring our aircraft,” Walsh said.
(Victoria Moores - ATWOnline News)
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