Hawaiian Airlines launches new Premium Cabin A330s

Hawaiian Airlines yesterday took delivery of its first A330 aircraft featuring fully lie-flat seating in a Premium Cabin that surrounds passengers with island-inspired designs down to a twinkling constellation paying homage to the history of Polynesian navigation.

“Our custom-built fully lie-flat seats and our new Premium Cabin redefine the leisure travel experience to Hawaii,” said Mark Dunkerley, Hawaiian’s President and CEO, in yesterday’s announcement. “In details little and large we have crafted a new seat and a new cabin to look after our guests in unparalleled comfort accompanied by the authenticity and warmth of our in-flight Hawaiian hospitality.”

The 18 lie-flat seats were made with curved shells to evoke gentle ocean waves. The seats fold into 180-degree beds that are 20.5 inches wide by 76 inches long. Aligned in a 2-2-2 configuration, passengers seated in the cabin will have access to intuitive seat controls and access to multiple power ports, including two USB connections and one A/C outlet.

An advanced in-flight entertainment system is powered by the next generation of large-format tablets resting on an adjustable telescoping arm for optimal viewing angle and comfort.

Hawaiian collaborated with California-based consultancy PaulWylde to incorporate flowing curves, while marrying organic textures and bright-saturated color in its Premium Cabin. Optimares, an Italian seat manufacturer specializing in traveler-centric design, created an exclusive, highly customized seat in premium leather from Poltrona Frau. The airline’s island design is reflected in earth, sand and sea tones alongside natural materials: from the wave-inspired seatback shell to an adjustable privacy partition of natural reeds embedded in resin, and a ‘constellation panel’ between premium and main cabins.

In the cabin is a rendering of the constellation, Makali'i, in subtly twinkling fiber-optic lights. Also known as Pleiades, or the Seven Sisters in Western astronomy, the stars were instrumental in guiding early Polynesian explorers. The constellation was high in the sky on the date of its first flight on Nov. 11, 1929, and Hawaiian’s first A330 aircraft was christened Makali’i.

Hawaiian unveiled plans for its Premium Cabin last year. As part of the upgrade, Hawaiian is also adding 28 additional Extra Comfort seats to the A330 aircraft. The Extra Comfort option features 36 inches of seat pitch, priority boarding at the gate, complimentary on-demand in-seat entertainment, and a personal power outlet.

Today, Hawaiian’s wide-body, twin-aisle A330-200 aircraft seat 294 passengers, with 18 in Business/First Class, 40 in Extra Comfort and 236 in the Main Cabin. In the new configuration, the aircraft will seat 278 passengers, with 18 in the Premium Cabin, 68 in Extra Comfort and 192 in the Main Cabin. Seat pitch in the Main Cabin will remain a roomy 31 inches.

Hawaiian’s newly outfitted A330 Premium Cabin will enter the carrier’s U.S. West Coast network next month. Sales for the Premium Cabin are expected to commence in the fall, when the first dedicated routes will be revealed along with new signature service elements and a host of new amenities.

Hawaiian will phase installation of additional A330 Premium Cabins starting this fall through early 2018. It will have 23 A330s by this summer after taking delivery of its final aircraft type on order.