Air New Zealand has revealed more details about its Skynest feature, the world's first sleep pods in the sky.
Air New Zealand Chief Customer and Sales Officer Leanne Geraghty said Skynest is going to be a real game changer, adding more flexibility to the economy travel experience.
"Our 83-year history is marked by a commitment to innovation and pushing the boundaries of what's possible. SkyNest is the latest example, and we're proud to be leading the way with this world-first cabin feature,” said Geraghty.
The announcement was made at the TRENZ conference, where a real-life Skynest experience was available for the first time.
"SkyNest has captured the imagination of a global audience and its uniqueness has already been acknowledged by multiple awards – the latest being a finalist in the Crystal Cabin Awards. We're delighted that customers are as excited about this new innovation as we are. Our extensive research and design process, which spanned five years and 170,000 hours, has resulted in a product that we're confident will revolutionise the in-flight experience for Economy passengers."
The Skynest will be a six-pod configured sleep zone that offers sessions for economy passengers to lie down when travelling long haul. It will be available from September 2024.
Each pod will include a full-size pillow, sheets and blanket, ear plugs, a separate reading light, a personal device USB outlet, a ventilation outlet, and lighting designed for rest.
Each passenger will be limited to one session, with families travelling on the same ticket able to book a session for each passenger, pending availability. Skynest provides economy passengers with an opportunity to lie flat and rest during longer flights.
The Skynest will be located between Premium Economy and Economy, and each pod will come with a separate seatbelt to ensure passengers can fasten them and stay in the pod should the seat belt sign come on during turbulence. The bedding will be changed between each session, and a 30-minute transition time will be allowed for this. The lights will gently come on at the end of each session, and crew will politely wake any passengers who sleep through this.
"We're still working through the exact details of how the booking process will work, and we have yet to determine the price. At this stage are looking at around $400 to $600 for the 4-hour period."
