Crystal Cabin Awards: The airplane interior designs of the future

Francesca Street, CNN
4 minute read
Published 10:47 AM EDT, Wed September 15, 2021
interspace-seat-cnn-travel (3)
Courtesy Francesca Street/CNN
CNN  — 

A touchless airplane bathroom concept and a next-generation economy seat have been named as winning designs in an annual contest highlighting airplane cabin innovations that could reshape the future of flying.

French cabin designer Safran’s hands-free bathroom design Beacon won the Clean and Safe Air Travel category in this year’s Crystal Cabin Awards, while Safran-backed seat concept Interspace took home the Judges’ Choice award.

The winners were announced at a virtual ceremony as part of the Aircraft Interiors Expo 2021, an industry event showcasing innovation in cabin design.

The awards, judged by 28 industry experts, usually recognize eight categories but limited it to two key awards for 2021 in the wake of the pandemic.

Lukas Kaestner, president of the Crystal Cabin Awards Association, told CNN Travel that choosing the winners was a “close race” and the range of nominees “show that innovation in passenger experience is still very active, even after more than one year of the pandemic.”

Next generation economy seat

<strong>New concept: </strong>This new airplane seat design comes with "padded wings" that fold out from behind both sides of the seat back, making the experience more private and making it easier to sleep.
New concept: This new airplane seat design comes with "padded wings" that fold out from behind both sides of the seat back, making the experience more private and making it easier to sleep.
Courtesy Francesca Street/CNN
<strong>Testing out:</strong> CNN Travel tested out the concept at the launch in London.
Testing out: CNN Travel tested out the concept at the launch in London.
Courtesy Francesca Street/CNN
<strong>Easy to sleep</strong>: The seat's padded wings allow passengers to rest their heads when sleeping.
Easy to sleep: The seat's padded wings allow passengers to rest their heads when sleeping.
Courtesy Francesca Street/CNN
<strong>Design prowess:</strong> The seat is the brainchild of Luke Miles, founder of design company New Territory. Previously, Miles worked as Head of Design for Virgin Atlantic.
Design prowess: The seat is the brainchild of Luke Miles, founder of design company New Territory. Previously, Miles worked as Head of Design for Virgin Atlantic.
Courtesy New Territory/Universal Movement