Proposed newcomer Global Airlines has appointed a specialist aircraft cabin design company to work on designing the interiors of its fleet of four Airbus A380s.
The carrier has appointed Factorydesign to lead the process of designing the airline’s onboard product. The multi-award-winning London-based design agency has been working with the proposed carrier since the start of 2023. The company was reportedly given an aircraft-wide brief to reimagine the “golden age of travel” on the airline’s fleet of four A380s.
According to a statement from Global Airlines, Factorydesign has also been tasked with finding ways of enhancing the long-haul onboard product for passengers by “finding improvements and innovations that will help the airline stand out in the market by providing elevated levels of comfort and service across all cabins.”
Following the airline’s brand guidelines, and as featured in the images of the entrance of the First Suites & the new entrance to the main deck, Factorydesign has used a selection of deep reds to create a mood of “onboard elegance and vibrancy.”
“There are very few projects like this in aviation,” said Adam White, owner and partner of Factorydesign. “It’s a unique opportunity for me and the team to get our creative juices flowing and deliver a new, exciting A380 experience for passengers.”
“Onboard is a huge part of any trip and I want passengers to be excited to fly, and that’s what we’re committed to delivering for Global. And given the scale of the aircraft and the brief from the airline, we can genuinely innovate from both experiential and hard product perspectives,” he added.
“The UK is a leader in aircraft interior designs,” said James Asquith, CEO and Founder of Global Airlines. “It speaks volumes for the progress we are making that Adam and the team at Factorydesign are now officially onboard with us driving the innovation we are all excited to see on our aircraft.”
“The team at Factorydesign is totally bought into our desire to deliver a better product for passengers, and I am really excited to reveal all of the designs, across all cabins, in the coming months,” added White.
Global and Factorydesign will also reportedly commission a concept First Suite which will be publicized in early 2024.
In addition to this latest appointment, the carrier has also contracted with JETMS to bring to life the designs of Factorydesign. JETMS is a global base and line maintenance organization. It is expected that work will begin on fitting out the interior of Global’s first A380 in the early part of 2024. This aircraft is currently registered 9H-GLOBL and is sitting on the Air Operators’ Certificate of Portugal’s Hi Fly.
Initially, JETMS will refurbish the first aircraft interior ahead of it carrying the first load of Global Airlines passengers, although the date of the carrier’s inaugural flight is yet to be announced.
In October 2023, in what the airline described as a “significant operational development,” the startup UK-based carrier announced it had teamed up with Portuguese lease specialist carrier Hi Fly to tap into that company’s operational experience with the Airbus A380.
The partnership aims to accelerate the inauguration of Global’s flights between London and New York using the Airbus superjumbo sometime in 2024.
The Portuguese operator currently holds the title of the only airline worldwide that has operated a second-hand Airbus A380. The signing of an agreement between the two carriers has led to the companies collaborating on developing and maintaining the four A380 aircraft that the newcomer airline has so far acquired.