AIX CabinSpace Live to Showcase Connectivity, Accessibility, and Sustainability in Aircraft Cabins

This year’s CabinSpace Live conference agenda at the Aircraft Interiors Expo in Hamburg will be highlighting connectivity, accessibility and sustainability among other topics and features leading figures from the aircraft interiors industry.

Demand for connectivity on board increases each year. According to Inmarsat’s annual passenger survey report, 77% of surveyed people said that inflight Wi-Fi is important to them – an increase of 40% since 2018.

This year’s CabinSpace Live programme, hosted by Inflight, will feature a number of sessions focusing on this important topic. Speakers will this year include industry key figures such as William Milroy, Chairman and CTO of ThinKom Solutions, and David Coiley, Regional Vice President (Asia Pacific), Inmarsat.

When it comes to offering free connectivity and better in-seat power onboard, Corinne Streichert, Founder of IFECtiv, will challenge attendees to think about how connectivity enables the passenger experience. The panel session will see industry leaders including Tal Kalderon, Head of Inflight Entertainment & Connectivity, EL AL Israel Airlines, Neale Faulkner, Regional Vice President, Inmarsat Aviation, and Mark Reed, Director of Business Development, North America, IFPL Group assess the benefits, helping attendees understand how they outweigh the associated costs.

Aviation Journalist Gordon Smith will lead a session on high-tech ancillaries which explores how to tailor onboard retail to help airlines sell more. He will highlight how these solutions offer limitless revenue opportunities and explore the role of passenger engagement to make buying onboard more appealing and accessible for all.

Accessibility will also be a headline topic at the CabinSpace Live theatre, with Christopher Wood MBE and Founder of Flying Disabled, exploring the diversity of passenger needs, and focusing on age, physical and behavioural conditions. He will be joined by Walt Fluharty, a board member for All Wheels Up, and Iris Kowen, Air Travel Accessibility Consultant as they reflect on the pace of change and innovation and how operators can meet both existing and emerging needs.

Another topic set to dominate discussions in the CabinSpace Live Theatre will be sustainability. Satu Dahl, Editor of Inflight Magazine, will be among the speakers touching upon the role of sustainability in cabin design, specifically addressing aircraft seating. The session, which will include speakers from Iberia, Recaro, Unum and Chaise Longue, considers sustainability as one of the key factors when choosing aircraft seating, along with comfort, safety, ergonomics and cost.