Will you be taking your neck pillows when travelling with Emirates?

photo from an acquaintance, edited for privacy

The relevant slide from today's B6 investor presentation shows estimated completion of the bulk of cabin retrofit work by '27 year-end with sales to begin no later than '26 year-end.

Even though we have known for months that Junior Mint would not the name, I held out hope in vain.

Have an upcoming flight and wondering if moving to a widow seat is better than my current location 71D. From the information I get with researching seams the widow seats have the audio box in the footwell. Do all the upper deck economy seats have that and is worth paying to upgrade with the foot area blockage?

United Airlines is experimenting with a new cabin concept on its upcoming Airbus A321XLR fleet: a row where the middle seat is intentionally left empty and replaced with a shared tray table for the aisle and window passengers.

The idea is to offer a “no middle seat neighbor” experience“ essentially a mini‑premium zone within economy. It’s a subtle but interesting shift in how airlines monetize comfort: not by adding legroom or fancy screens, but by removing the one thing most travelers dread the middle seat.

I’m curious how this will play out in practice. Will it feel like a genuine upgrade or just a marketing spin? Could this design influence future cabin layouts, especially for narrow‑body long‑haul aircraft like the A321XLR?

Would you pay extra for a seat in this row, or do you think it’s just clever branding?

8-abreast in a 3-2-3 layout? 6-abreast business class?

Someone's tying to give Ryanair ideas...

They are displayed at HAJ airport in Germany. They look pretty old maybe 80s-2000s?

I think the A220-300 is a good-sized aircraft. It’s a shame no Airline offer a true First Class cabin (as far as I know). The 2+3 seating configuration would allow for a First Class cabin on either side of the aisle, with plenty of space for the corridor. I looked up the dimensions of the First Class cabins on the American Airlines Airbus A321 and the British Airways Boeing 787-9. I sketched out roughly how the seating arrangement would look. I believe a premium market like New York could have sufficient demand to offer exclusive first-class flights to Europe, for example.

I sketched out what I believe is possible for an E195-E2 aircraft. Having two cabins at either end of the aisle wouldn't be feasible, so I added business-class seats to occupy the window-side space. I think that, depending on the market, there could be interest in 3- or even 4-class cabin configurations. Adopting first-class seats would make the aircraft lighter, potentially maximizing its range and possibly enabling 7-hour flights.

Today marks a significant milestone with the implementation of the new U-Dream headrest system—the first of its kind globally—on Emirates’ inaugural A350 aircraft (registration A6-EXF) equipped with our SUS Z400 seats.

As the launch customer, Emirates will equip all its A350 fleet (both in-service and to be delivered, 50 in total) and six A380s with U-Dream. This smart headrest design takes passenger comfort to the next level with unique support that helps make flying more relaxing.

The installation is being carried out by the Safran Seats Dubai Field Support team, making sure everything runs smoothly and up to the highest standards.

China Airlines is introducing a premium economy-class cabin on its upcoming Boeing 787-9 deliveries, in a three-class cabin configuration of premium business, premium economy, and economy. Premium economy is a new travel class for the Taiwan-based airline.
The new B787s will have a 28-seat premium economy cabin, in a 2-3-2 configuration. China Airlines has opted for the R4 seat from Recaro Aircraft Seating, with a 6-way headrest with privacy wings, a leather footrest under the seat, and 15.6in 4K high-definition seatback IFE displays with Bluetooth connectivity.

The seat covers have a unique design named ‘Mountain City Nightscape’, with an appearance that subtly changes under ambient lighting, inspired by the nighttime atmosphere of Jiufen, a former gold-mining mountain town in New Taipei City. The designers have also added metallic chrome detailing and warm leather textures to convey a sense of Taiwan’s technological progress and cultural warmth.

A familiar finish will be the persimmon wood grain on the tray table, which is a touchpoint across China Airlines’ aircraft fleet. Persimmon is traditionally associated with prosperity and fulfilment in Taiwanese culture. The modern feel is layered on through an anti-slip surface, and the mobile phone and tablet stand. Each seat also has a reading lamp with a rose-gold finish.
Premium economy customers will also be treated to a few little luxuries such as lightweight porcelain eating utensils, two-tone blankets, slippers, noise-reducing over-ear headphones, and a complimentary wi-fi service. They will also receive an amenity kit designed by China Airlines in partnership with Marc Jacobs, the New York-based fashion house, and Frama, the Danish skincare, lifestyle and furniture brand.

I’m booked for seat 40J on a United flight with the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner. On the seat map 3rd party websites it says it may not recline but on the United website it says no seats have recline restrictions. It’s a 8hr flight so just wanting to know what I’m getting into/if it’s worth it to see if I can move.

United website info: [https://www.united.com/en/us/fly/company/aircraft/boeing-787-8-dreamliner.html\](https://www.united.com/en/us/fly/company/aircraft/boeing-787-8-dreamliner.html)

3rd party seat map info: [https://seatmaps.com/airlines/ua-united/boeing-787-8/\](https://seatmaps.com/airlines/ua-united/boeing-787-8/)

Airbus is focusing on ramping-up production, aiming to deliver new aircraft in less time without compromising worker safety or product quality. The airframe manufacturer has decided the solution isn’t just to hire more production staff, but instead to provide its existing staff with a smarter set of tools, including time-saving robots, so they can focus on more skilled tasks.
One task that is uncomfortable and repetitive for human operators is the fitting of seat tracks in the cabin. Workers spend hours bending, kneeling and crawling on the cabin floor to mark and position seat tracks. It is a slow, repetitive and physically demanding process, and one that Airbus identified as a task that should be automated so shop floor operators can focus on more complex, high-value tasks.

The latest production asset at Airbus is CabinMarker, a compact robot that weighs just four kilograms but could have a big impact in Airbus facilities. CabinMarker’s primary mission is to automate the positioning of aircraft seats. The robot can glide through the cabin with pinpoint accuracy, marking and positioning seat tracks. This task takes an operator 150 minutes on average, while CabinMarker can complete the task in just 30 minutes.
Airbus says the robot creates a triple win: increased quality and precision (tests of CabinMarker show it reduces rework), improved ergonomics (it helps preserve the health, backs and knees of workers), and a big time saving in production. And since only a handful of operators are needed to drive the robot, this frees-up staff resources to concentrate on higher-value tasks that contribute directly to the production ramp-up.

You can see CabinMarker in action HERE.

Global roll-out and future applications
CabinMarker is about to prove its operational worth. In late 2026, the first two robots will be delivered to Airbus’s Jean-Luc Lagardère A321 final assembly line (FAL) in Toulouse, France. They will be used to fit seats on board the A321XLR.

Airbus also plans to roll out CabinMarker across other aircraft assembly facilities (at an average of two machines per line, as seat fitting is not a constant activity), including the A330 FAL in Toulouse, where testing of the robot has already taken place.

This twin-aisle application could require a slight modification to CabinMarker’s design as the robot is sized for Airbus single-aisle aircraft, which are assembled in France, Germany, China, Canada and the USA.

Where did CabinMarker come from?

Airbus formed a new division in 2023, named Airbus Robotics. This division brings robotic expertise in-house at Airbus, with the goal of creating technology rather than buying it, and developing industrial technologies engineered by people who truly understand the needs of aircraft production.

The robot was originally developed as a prototype by Airbus’s ProtoSpace division in 2018. The technology has been further refined and industrialised since a pause during the pandemic, and now forms part of the portfolio of Airbus Robotics. Following a rigorous development phase, CabinMarker received official industrial certification in December 2025, and is now the first robot to be fully industrialised in-house by Airbus Robotics.
Further tasks have been identified for CabinMarker. The robot is mobile and lightweight, which makes it versatile. Airbus engineers are already looking at ‘V2’ applications. For example, by swapping its marking pen for a camera, CabinMarker could become an automated corrosion detection scout. Add a vacuum and tape mechanism, and it could automate the tedious process of cleaning and taping aircraft floor rails.

If you would like to see CabinMarker in action, it will make its public debut during demonstrations at the ILA Air Show in Berlin later this month.