For over a century, the German car marquee Mercedes-Benz has symbolised luxury, elegance and engineering excellence in automobiles. Now, for the first time , according to an announcement at the European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition in Geneva, Mercedes Benz is set to take to the skies by teaming up with German airlines Lufthansa to design luxury cabins in the airline’s exclusive feet of short – medium – haul private jets.
The cabins carry several signature elements of Mercedes-Benz’s iconic S-Class sedan. These include windows covered with black panels that are equipped with touch screen controls for easy access to the in-flight infotainment system. According to a press release issued by Lufthansa, ”The traditional separation of ceiling , wall and floor will be entirely replaced by a dynamic, spiral layout. This gives rise to new, independent spatial zones without the typical arrangement of seat and wall elements. The new sense of space is additionally reinforced by Mercedes Benz’s typically strong emphasis on contrast in terms of material, colour, and lighting.”
So, on entering the cabin, do not be surprised if you cannot spot aisles or the traditional lay-flat seating found in business class of airplanes. Instead, you will be greeted by stunning black and white ceilings, walls and floors visually blending into one another, plush leather wraparound seats, fully-reclining chairs, glowing blue aquariums, and even a two-person bed to lounge in during long flights.
According to Gorden Wagener, VP,Design for Mercedes Benz’s corporate parent, Daimler AG, ”{All} this creates an ambience that resembles a luxury penthouse rather than an airline cabin’s interior.”
Lufthansa and Mercedes-Benz have not announced a launch date when these luxury cabin would be installed on commercial flights. This is mainly because of the substantial expenses required in equipping regular airplanes with these cabins which will also result in significantly higher fares. For now, the duo is focusing on catering only to its highly exclusive and discerning clientele that travels in its private jets.
By Jafer Khan