february-2012

MADE TO
ORDER
Why airlines want bespoke
cabins – and how suppliers cope
CHILL PILL
Stressed-out passengers
create revenue opportunities
DREAM RIDE
Boeing’s 787 doesn’t
disappoint fi rst fl yers
SPICE, SPICE BABY
Why aircraft galleys are
due for a makeover
AIRLINE PASSENGER
Official Publication of the Airline Passenger Experience Association
FEBRUARY 2012
CABIN INTERIOR | Content | IFEc | Inflight Services | passenger | Pre/Post-Flight

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Providing IFE Content Management and Technical Services for Airlines Worldwide.
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If you want to know who’s who in our industry and what they’re predicting
for the future, log on to thePMEInterview.com. To celebrate our 50th interview,
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Watch the Rick Warren interview for your chance to win an iPad.
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CONTENTS: FEATURES
28
STANDARD VS. STAND-OUT
Airframers want standardised interiors to cut costs;
airlines want customised interiors to stand out.
Mary Kirby fi nds the middle ground
38
STRESS RELIEF
Airports can be stressful. Raymond Kollau looks
at how airlines are lessening the pain for their
customers – and generating revenue in the process
44
INTERVIEW
Andy McEwan, CEO of IFE Services Ltd., tells us
about the changes he sees happening in the IFE
industry, and the opportunities they bring
47
THE NEED FOR SPEED
In the race to equip their aircraft with infl ight
connectivity, Will Horton fi nds that some airlines are
jockeying for position in the superfast lane
54
A NEW IFE CONTENT DELIVERY PARADIGM?
IFE’s Holy Grail, the early window movie, is under
threat. Industry expert Michael Childers asks, “Can
changes to content delivery save it?”
60
LIVING THE DREAM ON BOARD THE BOEING 787
Aviation blogger David Parker Brown takes off
aboard ANA’s brand-new Boeing 787, one of the
fi rst Dreamliners to go into service
70
LESSONS IN LOUNGING
Airport lounges are an important part of an
airline’s brand image. Benét Wilson discovers
who’s setting the bar and who’s playing catch-up
80
WHAT’S BEHIND THE CURTAIN?
Galleys are a big if indirect part of the passenger
experience, affecting the quality of both food and
service. Jonathan Norris sheds light on galley innovation
92
THAT’LL DO NICELY, SIR!
New payment methods coupled with infl ight
retail can generate crucial ancillary revenue for
airlines, writes Jonathan Norris
101
APEX UPDATES
Meet the board of directors, read the Technology
Committee’s report and fi nd out about the APEX
TV Market Conference happening in April
44
60
28
80
70
CONTENTS
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
03

04
CONTENTS
FEBRUARY 2012
11
78
90
106 – 128
COMING ATTRACTIONS
CONTENTS: UPFRONT
CONTENTS: REGULARS
10-27
AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE NEWS
The latest from the APEX world, including the
Gogo fl oat, Bombardier’s CSeries, infl ight cybersecurity,
IATA’s forecast for 2012 and Lufthansa
connected again
14
WELCOME TO THE BRAVE NEW WORLD?
Column by Jonathan Norris
Disney’s Arnaud Robert imagines the future of
IFE at the APEX Technology Committee meeting
21
AIRPORTS GET PERSONAL
Column by Stephanie Gehman
How airports are reaching out to their customers
through social media
69
PASSENGER
Amanda Smith on the fear of fl ying, what
travellers can do about it and how airlines
can help
78
FOOD
What’s in a name? asks Guy Dimond, as airlines
scramble to recruit celebrity chefs. Do they really
make a difference?
90
AMENITIES
Stephanie Gehman on how passengers
are learning from the best to improve their
experience: themselves
130
EDITOR’S CLOSING PAGE
Mary Kirby on what airlines promise, what they
deliver and the blue sky between the two
THE TEAM
EDITORIAL
Executive Director: Jonathan Norris,
jonathan.norris@ink-global.com
Editor-in-Chief: Mary Kirby
mary.kirby@ink-global.com
Sub-Editor: Alex Gilly
DESIGN
Designer: Jo Dovey,
jo.dovey@ink-global.com
Picture Desk Manager: Alex Ortiz
PRODUCTION
Manager: Antonia Ferraro,
antonia.ferraro@ink-global.com
Prepress: KFR Pre-press Ltd
ADVERTISING
Sales Manager: Steve O’Connor,
steve.oconnor@ink-global.com,
Tel: +44 (0)20 7613 8770
Sales Specialist: John Docherty,
john.docherty@ink-global.com,
Tel: +44 (0)20 7749 2344
INK
Executive Creative Director:
Michael Keating
Publishing Director: Simon Leslie
Chief Executive: Jeffrey O’Rourke
Chief Operating Offi cer:
MADE TO
ORDER
Why airlines want bespoke
cabins – and how suppliers cope
CHILL PILL
Stressed-out passengers
create revenue opportunities
DREAM RIDE
Boeing’s 787 doesn’t
disappoint fi rst fl yers
SPICE, SPICE BABY
Why aircraft galleys are
due for a makeover
Hugh Godsal
AIRLINE PASSENGER
Official Publication of the Airline Passenger Experience Association
FEBRUARY 2012
CABIN INTERIOR | Content | IFEc | Inflight Services | passenger | Pre/Post-Flight |
COVER IMAGE © CORBIS
Disclaimer: © INK. All material is strictly copyright
and all rights are reserved. Reproduction in whole
or part is prohibited without prior permission
from the publisher. Opinions expressed in APEX
Magazine are not necessarily those of APEX.

© The Muppets Studio, LLC. All rights reserved
AAAvvvaiillaable Available March MMaarcchh 2200112 2012
818-560-3920
www.ebvnt.disney.com

ILLUSTRATIONS © ROSS MURRAY / WWW.ROSSMURRAY.COM
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
As I begin my tenure as president of APEX, I am
fortunate to have inherited a core set of strategic
objectives that the APEX Board and its committees
have worked under and made steady progress
against for the last two years. For the coming year, our goal
is to continue to focus on four strategic areas - growth,
education, engagement and marketing - and to build on the
momentum so that each area continues to grow and evolve
with our organisation.
Th e fi rst objective is twofold: we need to grow the
membership base and broaden the existing membership.
Continued growth is fundamental to our organisation; it brings
in new ideas and helps to increase our voice and stature.
Th rough targeted campaigns launched in advance of, and in
conjunction with, our educational events and our specialised
markets, we plan to make some good inroads in this area.
Second, we need to provide educational content relevant
to the broadened membership base, while continuing to fulfi l
the content needs of our long-standing membership base.
Th e timely and thought-provoking topics that are covered
within this magazine and the APEXnews Digest combined with
the in-depth educational sessions within the TV Market
Conference, APEX EXPO, stand-alone Education Events
and the Technical Committee meetings, off er excellent
opportunities to keep up-to-date in these areas.
Th ird, we need to engage APEX members and stakeholders
from all over the world. Engagement is another key
component of our growth and vitality. I urge committee
chairs to encourage participation among new members
in new regions.
Overall, as an organisation we are facilitating this goal by
off ering programming this year in Europe, Asia and both
North and South America. (Check our events and educational
calendars for exact dates and topics for these events.)
Th e fi nal objective is to continue to enhance APEX’s
recognition and presence in the aviation industry through
exceptional marketing. We are currently in phase two
of our website redesign, with APEXTube and APEXPedia
rounding out our online marketing off erings. Stay tuned for
more information on these exciting website tools in the
coming months.
Our magazine and APEXnews Digest will have wider and
more frequent distribution next year. In addition, we expect
our awards programmes to achieve even greater recognition,
creating more awareness of APEX’s and its members’
innovations to improve the passenger experience.
With these objectives in mind, I look forward to working
with each of you to make these goals a reality in 2012!
CHRIS BABB
“Continued growth is fundamental
to our organisation; it brings in new
ideas and helps to increase our voice”
WELCOME
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
7

8
WELCOME
EDITOR’S LETTER
With oil prices hovering at USD 100 a barrel, a heavy debt load
and no end in sight to contentious labour negotiations, American
Airlines voluntarily fi led for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on
29 November.
Even though some Monday morning quarterbacks were quick to point out
that the carrier’s fi ling for court-supervised restructuring was unsurprising –
American had, after all, successfully fought back rumours in the autumn – the
truth is that the timing of the announcement startled many investors.
Why? Because American had enough liquidity to survive for a while longer,
and the ink was barely dry on a record-setting order with Airbus and Boeing
for 460 single-aisle aircraft, a deal fi nanced in part by the two airframers.
On learning the news I spared no emotion when I tweeted, “I think I’ll fi le for
Chapter 11 so I can aff ord that new Mercedes. Oh wait… something is very wrong.”
In hindsight, I may have been overzealous in my reproach. Th e question
of whether American was right or wrong is a matter for debate in a society
where “bankruptcy” is no longer a dirty word, and where one can rightly
argue that the carrier staved off Chapter 11 far longer than its US legacy
counterparts – though nobody can overstate the negative impact to
shareholders and employees.
What is abundantly obvious, however, is that a sizeable slice of American’s
survival strategy relies on replacing ineffi cient, aged jets with new single-aisle
aircraft (including re-engined models). And that, my friend, is good news for
the passenger experience and every company associated with making that
experience a memorable one.
Lest you wonder if American still cares about the passenger, on 30
November the carrier revealed details of its new Boeing 777-300ER interior,
including features that are “designed to create more inviting interiors and
enhance the travel experience”.
Such is our new world, where improving the passenger experience has
become the cost of doing business, even for carriers restructuring under
bankruptcy protection. It is because of this shift in focus to the passenger, and
my deep respect for the men and women who are bringing humanity back to
air travel, that I left my long-time employer Flight International to assume my
new role as editor-in-chief of this magazine.
Th e times they are a-changin’, and I’m ready to be part of that change right
here with you.
MARY MAR MA MARY
ARRY
Y KIRBY KIR K
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FEBRUARY 2012
CONTRIBUTORS
Will Horton
Originally from New York City
but now living in Melbourne,
Will is an active follower of the
air-transport industry with a
focus on how the Asia-Pacifi c
region’s emerging airlines are
addressing the passenger
experience. Will also writes
for the Centre for Asia Pacifi c
Aviation, and previously
worked with Flightglobal.
Jonathan Norris
Jonathan is executive director
– APEX Media Platform and
previously VP Cabin De Design
Offi ce at Airbus, where he
led
the development of wo world-
class cabin interiors
and
systems for all Airbus air aircraft
programmes. He’s also a mem member
of the APEX Techno Technology
Committee and a reg regular
speaker at industry eve events.
Raymond Kollau
Founder of independent
research agency airlinetrends.
com, which monitors the
aviation industry for innovations
in response to changing
consumer behaviour, Raymond
has been quoted as an industry
expert in publications such as
CNN, MSNBC, The Sydney
Morning Herald and The New
York Times.
Benét Wilson
Author of the AviationQueen.
com blog and a long-time
aviation/travel writer based
in Washington DC, Benét
has also worked for Mesa Air
Group and Delta Air Lines,
Rolls-Royce North America
and the Regional Airline
Association. She now handles
communications for the Aircraft
Owners and Pilots Association.
David Parker Brown
As founder of the blog
AirlineReporter.com, David
travels the world to delve
behind the scenes of the
airline business. His work is
syndicated with Reuters and
the Seattle PI and has been
quoted by many news sources.
He fi rmly believes that the
process of getting there is
more than half the fun.
ILLUSTRATIONS © ROSS MURRAY / WWW.ROSSMURRAY.COM

10
FEBRUARY 2012
Sponsored by
Post Modern Group
NEWS
CURRENT EVENTS AND HAPPENINGS IN AVIATION
GOING PUBLIC
GOGO IS SCRUTINISED AS IT SEEKS TO RAISE UP TO USD 100 MILLION THROUGH AN IPO
IPO PAPERS fi led by Gogo have peeled back the curtain on the infl ight Wi-Fi provider’s
fi nancials and usage stats. An optimistic reading of the fi ling says Gogo is on the path to
profi tability, after substantially reducing its operating losses in the nine months ended 30
September 2011. But some observers are not impressed with Gogo’s revelation it has provided
more than 15 million sessions to more than 4.4 million unique users – equating to a take rate of
about four per cent. Others question whether Gogo’s long-term revenue-share agreements with
US carriers are risky for the fi rm. “Ten years is two lifetimes in IFEC. Th at’s two administrations.
Some of the [airline] people who made these decisions are sunning themselves and drinking their
mai tais and don’t have to deal with it,” says a source. If Gogo’s IPO is successful, will other IFEC
fi rms like Row 44 and Lumexis follow suit? Time will tell.
APEX TC
At the November APEX
TC meeting, it became
clear that one size
does actually fi t all,
at least in the case of
installing Ku/Ka-band
SATCOM antennae
onto commercial
aircraft. ARINC 791
subcommittee chair,
Peter Lemme, says, “The
key goal is to promote
interchangeability at a
number of levels with
the aim of minimising
airline life-cycle
costs.” See the Past
Presentations section
on apex.aero for more
information.

BOMBARDIER READY TO CONNECT
BOMBARDIER SAYS CSERIES WILL SUPPORT DIFFERENT CONNECTIVITY OPTIONS
BOMBARDIER MAY yet prove to be the most
adventurous of airframers when it comes
to offering infl ight connectivity choices
to customers, after pledging to support a
multitude of options for its new twinjet, the
110/130-seat CSeries.
Inmarsat SwiftBroadband-supported
connectivity will be a linefi t option for
customers, but Bombardier also wants “to
be able to offer Ku-band” and Gogo’s airto-ground
system in the United States, says
Patrice Taillefer, manager, integrated product
development team for passenger cabin,
CSeries programme.
Entry-into-service of the CSeries is scheduled
for 2013, the same year that Inmarsat’s Global
Xpress Ka-band aeronautical service will begin
to come on line. Bombardier is understood to be
closely studying Global Xpress.
“We have been able to come up with a
backbone, an architecture… to be able to
accommodate all the different options,”
says Taillefer.
Embedded audio/video on-demand
systems from Panasonic Avionics and Thales
are already offered to CSeries customers; a
third option may be added to the menu. All
systems will be controlled by Bombardier’s
Cabin Management System (CMS), which was
designed by Panasonic. Bombardier has been
engaged in “working groups with airlines” to
further improve the GUI.
BOMBARDIER VENTURES WHERE
FEW AIRFRAMERS DARE TO GO
WITH ITS TWINJET CSERIES
HAVE QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ABOUT APEX? TELL US WHAT YOU THINK AT INFO@APEX.AERO
NEWS
SLIM SEATS ON WIDE BODIES
Seat-maker Geven can put
high-density seating on Airbus
widebodies destined for routes with
high-density populations
Italy’s Geven can provide high-density
economy-class seating for Airbus widebodies,
including the A380. “There is a trend going on:
the [growth of the] long-haul, low-cost carrier
for areas of the world where there are large
populations who do not have economical
access to fl ights,” says Doria De Chiara, Geven’s
business development manager. These airlines
are much like the single-aisle operators that
came before them, and high-density seating will
help their long-haul operations.
EMIRATI GRANDMOTHERS
MAKE IFE DEBUT
fl ydubai debuts new safety video
featuring popular animated fi gures
The creators of the popular Middle Eastern
3D animation series FREEJ have produced
a safety video for fl ydubai quite unlike
traditional safety demos seen on other airlines
in the region. “The FREEJ series focus on the
lives of four Emirati grandmothers living in a
secluded neighbourhood in Dubai. It is another
homegrown UAE brand and has proved
incredibly popular across this region,” says a
fl ydubai spokeswoman. “fl ydubai sees many
synergies with FREEJ.”
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
11

12
NEWS
AIRCRAFT NETWORK SECURITY
MEANS KEEPING THE CABIN
AND AVIONICS WORLDS APART
AIR-TIGHT SECURITY
INFLIGHT CYBER-SECURITY IS SOMETHING WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT
THE INTRODUCTION of IP networks, open-software architecture and
connectivity has been warmly welcomed and embraced on the
ground, and rightly so. On aircraft, however, they have the potential
to open the proverbial can of worms. Right now, the industry is protected,
more or less, by public ignorance about the potential gaps in aircraft network
security. However, it’s time for the industry to work to eliminate these gaps
or, at the very least, minimise potential security threats. Both EASA and the
FAA have expressed concerns regarding the security of new e-enabled
aircraft, namely the Airbus A350 and A380 and the Boeing 787, and have
mandated additional certifi cation requirements. Th ese concerns are also
applicable to legacy aircraft that have been modifi ed to include e-enabled
systems, such as the Boeing 747-8/8F. During the certifi cation process,
airframers must take into account and defend against possible attacks
through airborne peripherals, both wired and wireless, or through airport
LAN applications.
INDUSTRY UPDATES
1 2 3
ACJ WITH FULL HD
Airbus recently delivered
an ACJ319 fi tted with a
luxurious cabin featuring
a full HD IFE system to a
customer in Eastern Europe.
The IFE system features
a 52in rotating screen
installed in a cinema lounge.
FEBRUARY 2012
THREE SHY OF GOAL
Falling short of an earlier
projection that it would
deliver 480 aircraft in
2011, Boeing delivered
477 aircraft for the year,
including 372 Boeing 737s,
nine 747s, 20 767s, 73 777s
and three 787 twinjets.
AIRBUS AHEAD
Airbus is estimated to
have delivered more than
530 aircraft in 2011. As of
30 November, Airbus had
delivered a total of 477
aircraft – 377 A320 family
aircraft, 78 A330/A340s
and 22 A380s.
DO YOU SEE WHAT I SEE?
Director’s vision does not always
translate to IFE or PEDs
A director’s vision isn’t
necessarily to have his
or her movie viewed
on an iPhone or on IFE
seat-back monitors of
varying sizes. Any form
of editing distorts the fi lm
from its original form. In
the end, though the work
is tampered, the artist
should be comforted by the image of a weary
traveller, popping in ear-buds and choosing to
watch a fi lm that he or she may not otherwise
have time to see at the theatre.
SO LONG, FAREWELL, AUF
WIEDERSEHEN, GOODNIGHT
AirTran waves goodbye to XM
satellite radio
AirTran Airways is
retiring its XM Satellite
Radio product, citing the
introduction of infl ight
Wi-Fi “as well as the
leaps in technology of
personal media devices”
that passengers now
bring aboard. AirTran
explains, “This decision
is another step in the integration of offering
a consistent product between [acquirer]
Southwest and AirTran. Plus, with the cost of
fuel staying at ever-increasing highs, losing
the weight of the equipment for XM will help
reduce our fuel costs.”
KEEPING IFE COSTS DOWN
Virgin Australia selects BoardConnect
Virgin Australia’s
agreement with
Lufthansa Systems to
trial its BoardConnect
streaming IFE solution
from mid-2012 on a
single Boeing 737-800
comes at a critical time
for the carrier as it looks
to transition from its
low-cost carrier origins to a full-service airline.
Lufthansa Systems chief information offi cer Jörg
Liebe estimates BoardConnect on an A320 or
737 will save an airline 50 per cent in costs and
500kg in weight over a legacy solution.
FOR MORE NEWS, VIEWS AND A PLATFORM TO SPEAK YOUR MIND, GO TO THE APEX EDITOR’S BLOG AT BLOG.APEX.AERO
Sponsored by
Post Modern Group

Run the future,
not cables
Lufthansa Systems AG
Corporate Marketing
Am Weiher 24
65451 Kelsterbach
info@LHsystems.com
www.LHsystems.com
BoardConnect
There is something new in the air.
Lufthansa Systems’ BoardConnect revolutionizes the IFE market.
BoardConnect is a flexible, wireless infotainment platform that integrates content,
processes and added-value services.
With BoardConnect, costs for implementation, operation and maintenance reach an
all-time low - while passenger comfort is taken to new heights.
Are you ready for take-off?

14
NEWS
JONATHAN NORRIS
WELCOME
TO A BRAVE
NEW WORLD?
WHERE IS NEW TECHNOLOGY LEADING US?
DISNEY’S ARNAUD ROBERT IMAGINES THE
FUTURE OF IFE AT THE HOUSE OF MOUSE
IN RECENT months, I have learnt the two
things you should never say in any APEX
forum are (a) that embedded IFE is going to
disappear from the aircraft, and (b) movies –
who needs ’em?
Despite this, both these topics were
successfully discussed in some depth during
the recent APEX Technology Committee
meeting held at the Walt Disney Studios in
Burbank, California on 8-9 November 2011.
During his keynote address, Arnaud
Robert, SVP of distribution technology at
Walt Disney Studios, asked the question,
“Where’s all this technology leading us?”
According to Robert, the fi rst big
technology trend is that “from a chipset
perspective it’s all about better, faster,
cheaper”, which he predicts means
“consumer device innovation will
completely outpace the rate at which you
can change systems in your aircraft.” Th is
has been the case in the aviation industry for
quite some time as the timeline to develop
new aircraft is diametrically opposed to
the rapid technology updates driven by the
whims of the consumer electronics world.
Robert says consumer devices “might
actually become the entertainment device
on the aircraft”. While some in the industry
have already made this point quite strongly,
it is apparent from the discussions held
during the TC that the likelihood of this
FEBRUARY 2012
happening is remote – and that a much more
likely outcome is that consumer devices will
supplement the passenger entertainment
experience aboard an aircraft.
Th e second big trend that Robert is
seeing is the introduction of faster, lighter,
solid-state drive (SSD) storage, which, he
speculates, “will provide some signifi cant
weight benefi ts to aircraft over conventional
hard-drive systems or, alternatively, provide
more storage capacity for the same weight”.
He adds, “Th e third trend is that
connectivity is everywhere. Consumers
expect to be connected in some fashion
everywhere – at home, in the offi ce, on a
train and in fl ight.
“At Disney, what we’re trying to drive
from a studio perspective is how do we make
that experience connected; how do we make
it relevant; how do we make it that people
HAVE QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ABOUT APEX? TELL US WHAT YOU THINK AT INFO@APEX.AERO
Sponsored by
Post Modern Group
want to come back and how do we make it
that people really enjoy it.”
Another topic discussed by Robert was the
persistence of content purchased aboard for
later use via other media channels. “I can
totally imagine a world where you’re buying
a movie in fl ight, but if the only way to watch
the end of the movie or to watch it again
is to take another fl ight, it’s not really the
ultimate experience,” says Robert. “Cloud
solutions allow you to take movies home
on your device; or download from another
device because you bought them during
the fl ight.”
What was apparent from the subsequent
panel discussion is that this topic is far
from being straightforward as the airline
passenger industry tries to take on board
these consumer electronics and
media trends.
ILLUSTRATION NEIL WEBB @ DEBUTART

CONNECTING THE BUSINESS
AND PLEASURE OF FLYING
Wi-Fi ENABLED
With Panasonic Avionics’ eXW wireless IFEC solution, you can deliver an unforgettable in-flight entertainment experience to
your passengers’ Wi-Fi enabled laptop, tablet, smartphone or other personal electronic device.
You’ll be able to offer passengers an immersive, personalized web portal, so they can enjoy exciting onboard services such
as food and beverage ordering and payment, duty-free shopping, games, movies, moving maps, gate information, and
more. When combined with eXConnect, you can offer high-speed Internet access, social media services, email, and even live
television programming right to your passengers’ personal devices. eXW is more than entertainment, it’s a business platform
that helps you drive ancillary revenue with advanced e-commerce and advertising capabilities that is lightweight, cost
effective and easy to install.
Available as a standalone system or to complement your embedded IFEC solution, eXW is another way Panasonic is
connecting the business and pleasure of flying.
panasonic.aero
© 2011 Panasonic Avionics Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
AD142

16
NEWS
FEBRUARY 2012
IATA GIVES ITS VIEW ON THE
INDUSTRY OUTLOOK FOR 2012
AMID CONCERNS ABOUT A
EUROZONE CRISIS
EUROZONE CRISIS
BIGGEST RISK TO PROFITS
IATA ANNOUNCES REVISIONS TO ITS INDUSTRY OUTLOOK
IATA HAS downgraded its 2012 forecast for airline profi ts from USD 4.9 billion to USD 3.5
billion for a net margin of just 0.6 per cent (compared to USD 6.9 billion and a net
margin of 1.2 per cent in 2011). European carriers are by far in the most challenging
position. In a worst-case scenario, should the Eurozone crisis evolve into a full-blown banking
crisis and European recession, IATA estimates that the global aviation industry could suff er
losses exceeding USD 8 billion in 2012. “Th e biggest risk facing airline profi tability over the next
year is the economic turmoil that would result from a failure of governments to resolve the
Eurozone sovereign debt crisis. Such an outcome could lead to losses of over USD 8 billion, the
largest since the 2008 fi nancial crisis,” said Tony Tyler, IATA’s director general and CEO.
WHO’S GOING WHERE?
WORLDWIDE RPK MARKET SHARE
According to IATA, worldwide revenue passenger
kilometres (RPK) had increased by 5.9 per cent
at the end of November 2011 as compared to the
same year-to-date period in 2010.
Share of RPK by Market
2.5%
Africa
30.5%
Asia/Pacific
26.6%
Europe
5.6%
Latin America
7.9%
Middle East
26.8%
North America
Source: IATA Economics
FUELING THE FIRE
According to IATA, “The
stronger-than-expected
passenger performance
is offsetting (1) worsethan-expected
cargo
performance and (2)
somewhat higher-thananticipated
oil prices.
At an average oil price
of USD 112 per barrel,
the industry’s 2011
fuel bill is expected
to be USD 178 billion
(up USD 2 billion from
previous expectations). A
downward trend in cargo
since mid-year means
that cargo likely will
fi nish the year with a 0.5
per cent contraction in
volumes and fl at yields.”
POWER TO THE PEOPLE
Astronics powers up PEDs via USB
Astronics’ latest-generation, in-seat power system
allows passengers to simultaneously charge their
laptops while providing USB charging for personal
electronic devices (PEDs) such as smartphones,
iPods and cameras. Customer Iberia “is already
installed and fl ying”, notes EVP Mark Peabody. “We
have customers [that are] very interested. I expect
a lot of customers that were originally [offering]
standalone power not integrated into IFE will now
look at USB also.” Offering passengers in-seat
power is especially important for carriers that charge
for infl ight connectivity, notes Peabody.
FOR MORE NEWS, VIEWS AND A PLATFORM TO SPEAK YOUR MIND, GO TO THE APEX EDITOR’S BLOG AT BLOG.APEX.AERO
Sponsored by
Post Modern Group

18
NEWS
DANCING TO A NEW BEAT
SRILANKAN AIRLINES LAUNCHES RAVE SEAT-CENTRIC IFE
RAVE IS what it’s called and rave is what SriLankan
Airlines hopes passengers will do after trying the new
seat-centric IFE system from Th e IMS Company on
board its Airbus A330.
Th e inaugural fl ight of RAVE on SriLankan took place on 9
December 2011 on an A330 fl ight from Colombo to Male. “Th e
event climaxes nearly four years of planning, development and
production, which began during the market downturn in 2008,”
says IMS.
SriLankan will equip two A340s and fi ve A330s with RAVE,
with options for more, and joins a growing list of airlines opting
for the IFE system.
Th e carrier’s head of engineering, Priyantha Rose,
says SriLankan has given “priority to today’s industry
needs by initiating the installation of a high-quality [and
low-weight] audio/video-on-demand system” aboard its
medium-haul fl ights.
FEBRUARY 2012
SRILANKAN HOPES CUSTOMERS
WILL REACT ENTHUSIASTICALLY
TO ITS NEW RAVE IFE SYSTEM
GOING ALL THE WAY
Lufthansa progresses with infl ight
internet equipage on long-haul fl eet
Lufthansa is offering
infl ight, high-speed
internet on about 60 per
cent of its long-haul fl eet,
and expects to complete
installations of Panasonic
Avionics’ Ku-band system
by the end of 2012. A
former customer of now
defunct Connexion by
Boeing, Lufthansa reignited
internet service in late 2010
on its Airbus A330 aircraft.
It later moved to the A340-
300s, and is now fi tting its
A340-600s and 747s.
The Star Alliance
member’s new Airbus A380
aircraft will be retrofi tted
with the Panasonic system
last. Initial deliveries of
Boeing 747-8 aircraft to
Lufthansa will not be
equipped. However,
Lufthansa expects Boeing
to cut into production at
some point and install the
equipment at the factory.
Boeing recently began
offering Panasonic’s Ku
system as a line-fi t option
HAVE QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ABOUT APEX? TELL US WHAT YOU THINK AT INFO@APEX.AERO
Source: © 2011 digEcor, Inc
for widebody customers.
Since it reinstated
internet for passengers,
Lufthansa has learned
that business travellers
are not the only people
seeking to be connected in
the air. “Now we also see
that it has become a tool
for those people who feel
they need to be connected
all the time via Facebook
(and other social media),
and it really goes down
to the young ages, the
teenagers,” says Lufthansa.
The carrier still
intends to fi t its fl eet with
Panasonic’s infl ight GSM/
GPRS service, provided by
partner AeroMobile. But
it is holding strong on a
prior decision not to allow
passengers to make voice
calls, as its customers sent
a clear message that they
are seeking quietness on
board. The carrier is also
studying connectivity
solutions for its short- and
medium-haul aircraft.
SEAT-BACK SCREEN A SWEET SCENE?
PASSENGERS STILL ENJOY EMBEDDED IFE
In a survey conducted by infl ight portable IFE specialist
digEcor, 45 per cent of 542 respondents said they prefer
to view IFE via seat-back screens, while 30 per cent said
they would rather use their own PEDs. Some 64 per cent
of participants reside in North America.
PREFERENCE
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
00%
18 - 25
Seat-Back System
45% Average
26 - 30 31 - 35 36 - 40
Passenger-
Owned Device
11% Average
AGE GROUPS
Sponsored by
Post Modern Group
Airline-Provided
Handheld
45% Average
Overhead System
14% Average
41 - 45 46 - 50 51 - 55 56 - 60 60+

@

© 2012 Warner Bros. Pictures. All rights reserved.
Jeff Crawford • jeff.crawford@warnerbros.com
Angelica McCoy • angelica.mccoy@warnerbros.com
wbnts.warnerbros.com

ILLUSTRATION MATT HERRING @ DEBUTART
Sponsored by
Post Modern Group
STEPHANIE GEHMAN
AIRPORTS GET PERSONAL
CAN AIRPORTS TAKE THE HASSLE OUT OF TRAVEL? THEY’RE TRYING TO,
THROUGH REAL-TIME INTERACTIONS WITH PASSENGERS ON SOCIAL MEDIA
FLIGHT STATUS, parking coupons, shopping
specials, issue resolution – passengers are
no longer seeking this information merely
on an airport’s website or customer service
hotline; armed with smartphones and tablet
computers, today’s tech-savvy travellers
are reaching out to airports for real-time
response. Many are fi nding it.
What is the vehicle for this rapid-fi re
response? Th e answer is social media.
Interacting with passengers via Twitter,
Facebook, Google Plus, blogs, geo-location
services (ie, Foursquare), and YouTube has
become the norm for airport marketing
and communications professionals. Using
these social-media channels, airports
are embracing a connected audience who
ask questions, need air-travel problems
resolved, off er feedback, seek information,
shop for deals and discounts, and research
destinations. In some instance, these
travellers need only to tweet their questions
to receive a prompt, personal reply. In short,
airports are using social media to listen,
assist and deliver.
Ask nearly any airport that engages
passengers on these channels and they
will share that customer service is a key
driver. Given the thousands of passengers
passing through their facilities each day,
there are many opportunities to extend
the capabilities of their customer service
departments to social media.
Travellers especially want to know the
status of their fl ights, parking availability,
and how long they will have to wait
in security checkpoint queues, as this
knowledge can shave precious minutes off
their tight schedules. Who better to ask than
someone who has direct access to these
answers – airport personnel!
Th e days when passengers needed “buy
one, get one free” coupons for off ers at their
favourite airport shops or a “10 per cent
off ” coupon for an in-terminal restaurant
NEWS
are long gone. Nowadays, airports are
partnering with their vendors to share
discounts and deals for those travellers that
use geo-location check-in apps, which show
exactly where they are located at the airport.
Airports and vendors are taking some of
the work out of travelling and trying to make
it less of a hassle and a lot more personal.
“State-of-the-art facilities and great amenities are important, but
so is building a relationship with as many passengers as possible”
Airports are working both individually
and collectively with partners to make a
diff erence in those various aspects of the
air-travel experience that they control.
Yes, state-of-the-art facilities and great
amenities are important, but so is building
a relationship with as many passengers
as possible.
Flyers are reaching out for what they need
via social media, and airports are stepping
up in a real-time manner to listen, assist
and deliver.
FOR MORE NEWS, VIEWS AND A PLATFORM TO SPEAK YOUR MIND, GO TO THE APEX EDITOR’S BLOG AT BLOG.APEX.AERO
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
21

22
NEWS
YOU’RE ONAIR WHEN YOU’RE
ABOARD EMIRATES A380
EMIRATES BEGINS ROLLING OUT INFLIGHT WI-FI ACROSS ITS A380 FLEET
AFTER TESTING OnAir’s infl ight
Wi-Fi solution on nearly a
dozen Airbus A380s, Emirates
recently began publicising the service
to passengers.
Price plans start at USD 7.50 for mobile
devices and USD 15 for laptops for what
Emirates describes as “generous data
packages that allow plenty of internet”.
OnAir CEO Ian Dawkins says,
“Normally, you can have up to 12
simultaneous users physically pressing
the button, doing the same search at
the same time together. On a large
aircraft, people are doing things at
diff erent times.”
From 2012, all new Emirates A380s will
be delivered with a full range of Wi-Fi
and GSM/GPRS services from OnAir.
DID YOU KNOW?
The cost of infl ight GSM/GPRS is poised to
become more competitive. OnAir CEO Ian
Dawkins reveals that some mobile phone
operators intend to start offering specifi c
packages for their fl ying customers. Further
details will be released as OnAir reaches
agreements with various mobile phone
operators. A joint venture between SITA and
Airbus, OnAir’s infl ight connectivity solutions
are now fl ying with 12 airlines; Qantas and
Singapore Airlines will come on line shortly.
AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE MAGAZINE APEX CONTENT
As you are aware, APEX membership is a must for everyone interested in the airline passenger
experience industry. But are you making the most of all that APEX has to off er? In addition
to the benefi ts APEX provides the industry as a whole, such as APEXnews Daily SmartBrief,
APEXnews Digest, the Airline Passenger Experience magazine and APEXpedia, there are important
events that members have exclusive access to:
APEX EXPO
Attend the industry’s largest trade show featuring
nearly 100 exhibitors and thousands of the latest
infl ight products, systems and services.
TV MARKET CONFERENCE
Attend the only global industry event focused
specifi cally on bringing together infl ight TV
content buyers and leading providers of short-
subject and TV movie programming.
FEBRUARY 2012
EDUCATIONAL WORKSHOPS
Participate in interactive sessions given by
industry leaders and early adopters as they
share their knowledge on issues related to
comprehensive, high-interest passenger
experience-related topics.
TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE MEETINGS
Join industry leaders in creating industry-wide
quality and compatibility standards.
HAVE QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ABOUT APEX? TELL US WHAT YOU THINK AT INFO@APEX.AERO
Sponsored by
Post Modern Group
FROM 2012, ALL PASSENGERS
ABOARD EMIRATES’ A380S CAN
STAY CONNECTED – FOR A FEE
Make the Most of APEX Membership
APEX.AERO
Access the members-only section of the APEX
website, including the Member Directory, a virtual
“Who’s Who” of the airline passenger experience
industry. As a member, you also have exclusive access
to educational reference materials, such as APEX
Research Reports and APEX EXPO/TVMC transcripts
and presentations.
It is the APEX mission to offer members a wide range
of opportunities to excel in the airline passenger
experience industry by keeping them current with the
latest industry news, trends and developments, and
providing the means to foster relationships with clients
and colleagues from around the world.
IF YOU DON’T ALREADY, FOLLOW APEX ON TWITTER:
@THEAPEXASSOC AND FACEBOOK:
FACEBOOK.COM/APEX.AERO

The new In Flight Entertainment System, flies.
CABIN INTERIORS
Finally!... Airlines dreams become reality!...
Reliable!
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Simple to use!
Financially viable!
Lowest ownership!
Like all of them, fly...

TODAY
1
COMPANY CAN BRING COMMAND
PERFORMANCES TO SINGLE AISLES.
2012
>
>
INTRODUCING PAVES 3. THE INDUSTRY’S MOST VERSATILE IN-FLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM.
PAVES 3 from Rockwell Collins can deliver an overhead broadcast solution, a full on-demand in-seat
entertainment solution or any confi guration in between. With all content cached at the seat, singlepoint
system failures are eliminated, giving users a smooth entertainment experience every fl ight.
Easy upgradability provides system owners with cost-effective options. Enjoy the performance.
Learn more about PAVES 3 at rockwellcollins.com.
Visit us at Aircraft Interiors Expo, booth #6B1.
© 2012 Rockwell Collins, Inc. All rights reserved.
PAVES 3 benefits
Designed for single-aisle operations
Highly reliable
Easily upgradable
A true HD passenger experience

Sponsored by
Post Modern Group
NEWS
presents PaxEx*
*Passenger Experience Tweets
CREATE
DELIVER
MANAGE
THIS MONTH’S SHOUT
SOCIAL MEDIA HAS GIVEN AIRLINE PASSENGERS A VOICE
We want to show what passengers are saying about your industry, and have asked that they express
their highs, their lows and their no’s via the #PaxEx hashtag on Twitter. We will be featuring a fresh
#PaxEx infographic in each publication so that you can keep your fi nger on the pulse of what’s going on.
@winglets747
“Useless #PaxEx fact of
the day: Virgin Atlantic
is having to double
amount of hot chocolate
on fl ights due to high
demand.”
@brandingaero:
“What does airline brand
experience mean to
you?” // @richardtame
“Consistent delivery
of implicit and explicit
promises.”
@tcailloux
“Gorgeous sunset
over Florida this
evening on a @Delta @
BoeingAirplanes 757
from MIA to ATL. @Gogo
connectivity. Wonderful
crew and #PaxEx.”
@DanielRJStecher
“Turkish Airlines provides
best #infl ight food.”
FOR MORE NEWS, VIEWS AND A PLATFORM TO SPEAK YOUR MIND, GO TO THE APEX EDITOR’S BLOG AT BLOG.APEX.AERO
@seanhart
“Pleasantly surprised to
fi nd @gogo infl ight wifi on
a @Delta CRJ700 (IAH to
DTW).”
@CRWRick
“Looking at fellow PAX
on fl ight, it occurs to me
that infl ight entertainment
will be thing of the past.
Everyone has personal
device.”
@mtrumpbour
RT @JonBruner
“My @USAirways fl ight
attendant spent 10
minutes making pitches
for the US Airways
MasterCard over the PA.”
#hoboairline
@platttraveller
“Very tasty breakfast
thanks @QantasAirways
in the always amazing
SYD fi rst class lounge.”
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
25

26
CRYSTAL CLEAR
THINKING
COMPANIES VIE FOR COVETED CRYSTAL CABIN AWARD
A plethora of groundbreaking concepts and products have been shortlisted for an esteemed Crystal Cabin Award, the only
international award for excellence in aircraft interior innovation.
For the 2012 competition, participants are competing in seven categories: Greener Cabin, Health & Safety; Industrial
Design & Technical Concepts; Material & Components; Passenger Comfort; Premium Class Products; Visionary Concepts;
and University.
“Th e Crystal Cabin Award is unique in the aviation business. And what’s exciting is that it’s a new way to encourage
everybody who is involved in development, concepts, programming, to think ahead. Aviation is synonymous with
innovation,” says Jennifer Coutts Clay, author of Jetliner Cabins, which is among the sponsors of the award.
Th e shortlist for the 2012 Crystal Cabin Award is as follows:
ENTRANT PRODUCT/CONCEPT NAME
Aeroworks Europe BV Silent Safety Latch SSL
AERTEC Trash Compactor
AIDA Development GmbH Accessible Aircraft Lavatory
Airbus A350 XWB 4th Gen IFE platform
Airbus Bionic Bracket
Airbus Space Flex
Airbus The Airbus Concept Cabin
Almadesign LIFE
Andrew Muirhead & Son Ltd Low Carbon Leather
ANKER Teppichboden AIRlightECO
Aviointeriors S.p.A. Micro Suite
B/E Aerospace IFE Tablet Holder
B/E Aerospace Millennium Business Class Seat
B/E Aerospace & TEAGUE B/E Aerospace Essence Inserts Collection
FEBRUARY 2012
HAVE QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ABOUT APEX? TELL US WHAT YOU THINK AT INFO@APEX.AERO

CCA SHORTLIST
Bernd Kußmaul GmbH Design Study Mone
Bishop GmbH Flush Floor Panel Design
C&D Zodiac C&D Zodiac Sidewall & Lining System
C&D Zodiac C3 Ultralounge
Diehl Aerospace GmbH Video Passenger Recognition System for Boarding
Diehl Aerospace GmbH DAs Eco-Line all LED cabin lighting
Diehl Aircabin GmbH Change Room
Diehl Aircabin GmbH Comfort Bin
Diehl Comfort Modules GmbH Modular Glued Cable Bracket System
Diehl Comfort Modules GmbH Smart Lavatory Door
Driessen Aerospace Group NV New SFE Modular Galley Concept
EMTEQ Flat Panel LED Tile
EMTEQ intelliUSB Charging Outlet
FAROsky FAROsky Glow Safety Marker
Formation Design Group Inc. Formation Premium Seating Concept
Franz Reel cabinBART
Heath Tecna Amber Interior
Holthausen Elektronik GmbH time²
IACOBUCCI HF Electronics MGS microwave
IMAGIK INTL CORP HD-120
Israel Zárate Vargas Dynamic Seat for Economic Class
JPA Design Cathay Pacifi c New Business Class Suite
Lufthansa Systems Board Connect
Lufthansa Technik Skycycle
müller/romca industrial design Lufthansa First Class Cabin Boeing B747-400
Paperclip Design The Meerkat Seat Concept
Pelzer Consult GmbH Aircraft Trim Panel with Integrated Acoustics
Public Design Lab, The Hong Kong
Polytechnic University Braille Wise
SCHOTT AG SCHOTT and LHT HelioJet
SCHOTT AG SCHOTT Modular Reading Light Series
Sell GmbH Sell’s FST Adhesive Applications
Sicma Aero Seat (Zodiac Aerospace) Dragonfl y
Sky Max GmbH Sky-Tender
STG Aerospace STG PatternMatch
STG Aerospace STG WhiteHawk
Supracor Stimulite® honeycomb
THALES Smart Video Display Unit - G4
TIMCO Aerosystems TIMCO Aerosystems 3100 FeatherWeightTM
Passenger Seat
TriaGnoSys AeroBTS+
TTF Aerospace TTF Aerospace Tskin
Weber Aircraft LLC Crew Rest Seat
Willem Lijmbach DSAS-Concept
Zodiac Aerospace Genesis concept seat
ZODIAC CABIN CONTROLS Lavatory Water Heater
Th is is the sixth time that these international prizes will be awarded during the Aircraft
Interiors Expo in Hamburg. Th e Crystal Cabin Award ceremony, to be held on 27 March
2012, will be hosted by Mary Kirby, editor-in-chief of Airline Passenger Experience magazine.
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
27

28
STANDARD VS. STAND-OUT
Interiors suppliers must perform a delicate balancing act to ensure that the already constrained supply chain doesn’t
buckle under the weight of confl icting demands from airlines and airframers
WORDS BY MARY KILBY ILLUSTRATION BY PADDY MILLS @ SYNERGYART
FEBRUARY 2012

Commercial aircraft production has
soared to an all-time high and shows
no sign of abating. Both Airbus and
Boeing are preparing to increase output of
their respective narrowbody workhorses, the
A320 and 737, Airbus has begun assembly of its
new-design A350 XWB widebody, and Boeing
is trying to play catch-up on deliveries of its
delayed 787 Dreamliner.
Re-engined successors to the A320 and 737,
which are scheduled to make their debuts
around the middle of this decade, are also
proving wildly successful, and have injected
much excitement into the marketplace. To
wit, Airbus recently wished the Twitterverse a
“Happy neo’versary” to celebrate the fact that
one year after launching the A320neo (new
engine option), the twinjet has become “the
fastest-selling aircraft to date with 26 customers
committed to 1,450 aircraft”.
With so much production activity in the
pipeline, trusted manufacturers of aircraft
seats, galleys, lavatories, overhead bins,
lighting systems, interior components,
CABIN INTERIOR
cabin management systems and infl ight
entertainment and connectivity systems are
well placed to capture big business for years
to come.
“Every fi ve years, the airlines are modifying
the full cabin. Th e world fl eet will double [in
the next 20 years]. Of course, the old aircraft
will not leave the world fl eet before 15–20 years
so in their remaining time of life, they will be
modifi ed at least three times. So the market
is huge, huge, huge,” says Stéphane Bollon,
sales director at Aeroconseil, which handles
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
29

30
CABIN INTERIOR
engineering and certifi cation of connectivity systems, and recently
merged with French group AKKA Technologies. But even though some
fi rms are consolidating to build critical mass, a growing number of
industry stakeholders have begun to question whether the already
constrained supply chain can possibly keep pace with demand.
“When you look at it, you have these three massive interiors companies,
B/E Aerospace, Diehl and Zodiac, and they should be able to handle the
majority of the present workload by operating, as they are now, at or near
capacity. But in order to meet demand driven by Airbus and Boeing’s
planned rate increases, they’ll have to invest in infrastructure to ramp
up, which is risky because they don’t get paid until the aircraft goes into
service,” notes a long-time industry insider.
“Th en what happens when you load on the A350 XWB, you start
building the new Boeing 777, and add the new Sukhoi SuperJet,
Bombardier CSeries, Comac C919, Mitsubishi Regional Jet and re-engined
E-Jets into the mix, not to mention the A320neo and the re-engined 737
Max? Th ere is just not enough capacity out there to supply all
of these programmes.”
FEBRUARY 2012
BIG PUSH.
Airbus and Boeing are
ramping up production
of their narrowbody
workhorses to meet
unprecedented demand
UNDER PRESSURE
Aircraft interiors expert and independent
consultant Vern Alg last year was one of the
fi rst individuals to publicly sound the alarm
that a bottleneck in the interiors space is
making the aftermarket sourcing of aircraft
seats and galleys diffi cult for leasing companies
and airlines.
But the problem “has moved from the
aftermarket, and today it is impacting new
deliveries,” he tells Airline Passenger Experience
magazine. “Th e supply chain is constrained and
it’s only going to get worse.”
B/E Aerospace is seeing a defi nite “uptick” in
demand, says company VP and general manager
seating products Tom Plant. “Th e OEMs have
increased rates and we’re getting ready for that.
We don’t have any concern [about] that.”
But Plant has “certainly heard a number of
things this year that the airframers Airbus and
Boeing have been struggling in some of their
deliveries with some [other] of their suppliers.
We’re actually not on the forefront of that. Some
of it we hear from hearsay. Our on-time delivery
has been 100 per cent and it has been for a long
time now.”
“We get pushed by our
customers to introduce
new technology on a regular
basis. So we have to find
a balancing act with our
seat suppliers”
ALAN PELLEGRINI
MANAGING DIRECTOR THALES INFLIGHT
ENTERTAINMENT BUSINESS
BUYER VERSUS SUPPLIER
Th e sheer volume of work facing interiors
suppliers, and the amount of risk they’ll need
to assume to ramp up operations, is just another
consideration to grapple with. Suppliers must
also balance what are often confl icting interests
from airframers that want to off er more
standardised cabin solutions, and airlines that
are seeking to diff erentiate their cabins.
After the highly customised Airbus A380
programme suff ered signifi cant delays, Boeing
and Airbus each crafted their own version of
Supplier Furnished Equipment (SFE) catalogues
for the 787 and A350, respectively, in a bid to
slash lead times for Buyer Furnished Equipment
(BFE), most especially economy class seats,
galleys and embedded IFE. For example, Airbus
selected B/E Aerospace to be the sole supplier

The new standard in IFE.
Now Playing.
The IMS Company
2929 East Imperial Highway
Brea, CA 92821
1.714.854.8600 www.imsco-us.com

32
CABIN INTERIOR
of next-generation modular galley systems for
the A350, while three suppliers – B/E, Zodiac
and Ipeco – will provide galley inserts. Should
a customer want a diff erent galley system, the
onus is on them to arrange and pay for postdelivery
“green fi eld” retrofi ts after the airliners
roll off the production line. Th is approach is
similar to the SFE models employed by regional
aircraft manufacturers, which for the most part
have off ered a limited choice of interiors since
their aircraft were conceived.
“It’s more and more frequent that
manufacturers push airlines to take standard
cabin solutions. Sometimes, this may bring
savings. We strongly believe in customisation,
aiming [to] create a sort of family feeling in
colours, materials and design,” says Alitalia
director ancillary revenue, IFE and cabin layout
Aureliano Cicala.
FEBRUARY 2012
“We strongly believe
in customisation,
aiming [to] create a
sort of family feeling
in colours, materials
and design”
AURELIANO CICALA
DIRECTOR ANCILLARY REVENUE,
IFE AND CABIN LAYOUT, ALITALIA
Indeed, the move to SFE catalogues for the 787 and the A350
has proven controversial. Some airlines and lessors have quietly voiced
their frustrations that 787 and A350 catalogue SFE limits customisation,
fl exibility and competitiveness. As one 787 customer noted, Boeing’s
approach means that the carrier cannot off er the same product across its
entire fl eet, as seats installed on its current aircraft are not available in
the 787 catalogue.
NEW REALITIES
But airframers are showing no signs of changing course, and indeed
narrowbodies seem to be the next target for SFE. Airbus took its fi rst step in
this direction when in April 2011 it announced that Zodiac unit Driessen-
Zodiac Aerospace will progressively introduce galleys as SFE on the now
mature A320 programme as “the selected vendor” beginning in mid-2012.
Explaining its decision at the time, Airbus said the new supply model
will “improve the robustness of the supply chain by developing a close
partnership with one strong supplier”.
It notes: “Historically galleys have been Buyer Furnished Equipment
on the A320 family, with customers themselves responsible for
DAY FOR NIGHT.
Energy effi cient LED
lights have become a
fi xture on new-design
aircraft, allowing airlines
to set a mood any time
of the day

34
CABIN INTERIOR
on-time, on-quality delivery of equipment to the Airbus fi nal assembly
lines. Th e new SFE approach moves the programme management
responsibility to Airbus.”
Airlines have not been as receptive to the single galley concept as hoped,
claims a source. Nonetheless, Airbus is now understood to be eyeing more
standard seating options for the A320.
Speaking from “a purely operational standpoint”, B/E Aerospace’s Plant
says he understands why airframers want to award bigger work packages
to fewer and fewer players. “Th e thing that concerns me and the thing that
is missing in that is that it doesn’t tend to lead to a greater variety of choices
or greater innovation or greater product diff erentiation. At the end of the
day, if they push out a bunch of aeroplanes that are essentially the same,
I’m not sure they’ll sell as many of them. I think that is something they
have to watch and balance. We’re watching it closely,” he says.
Doria De Chiara, business development manager for seat maker Geven,
warns that most airlines will not accept standard seats “unless they
get something out of it; unless it’s cheap and [they] can get it tomorrow.
Otherwise they won’t. So it could be that they [airframers] adopt an
approach like car manufacturers that have a special series with a designer
interior – something to make it appealing. Otherwise, what’s the benefi t?”
CONTROLLED GROWTH
Even as airframers press airlines to adhere to more limited SFE catalogues,
airlines are pushing back with demands for greater choice, and the ability
FEBRUARY 2012
DIFFERENT STROKES.
Airlines expect to be
able to differentiate their
cabins with different
colours, fabrics, seat
architecture and
technology
to have potentially disruptive technology –
including new infl ight connectivity systems,
wireless IFE or integrated IFE/seats – installed
linefi t at the factory.
One need look no further than carriers like
Virgin America or fl ydubai to see that the whole
cabin interior of single-aisle aircraft is becoming
more and more competitive, and that the level of
diff erentiation being demanded today is where
long-range aircraft used to be 10 years ago.
It’s “generally more challenging” to bring new
equipment to the A320 or 737 because airframers
“are so sensitive to do anything that taxes the
[production] rates”, says Panasonic Avionics
CEO Paul Margis.
Consequently, the pace of change for
industrial design is outpacing the supply chain.
“Th e IFE experience is still far from what
passengers are used to on the ground,” notes
Alitalia’s Cicala.
Alan Pellegrini, managing director of the
Th ales infl ight entertainment business, believes
that the capacity constraints in the industry
aff ect the seat suppliers more than they do IFE.
“Because of the added integration with seat
suppliers that our competition [Panasonic]
now has and we have with our AVANT IFE
product, it makes it very challenging on them
[seat makers]. Th is is by no means a criticism
of B/E, Recaro or [Zodiac’s] Weber unit which,
by the way, work very closely with us and have
been very good. Th at said, they have enormous
work on their plate. It’s easier for them to not
introduce new things to keep their own supply
chain smooth,” says Pellegrini.
“We get pushed by our customers to
introduce new technology on a regular basis.
So we have to fi nd a balancing act with our seat
suppliers. Our relationship with the Big Th ree
IMAGES © AIRBUS S.A.S 2009, COMPUTER RENDERING BY AIRBUS DEUTCHLAND / © AIRBUS S.A.S 2011, C.BRINKMANN

36
CABIN INTERIOR
“The supply chain is
constrained and it’s only
going to get worse”
VERN ALG
INDEPENDENT CONSULTANT
[seat makers] is very strong. I believe they want
to do more, but fi nd they are constrained by
capacity. But at the same time, our customers
are pushing us and we need to push them
[the seat suppliers] to get it as quickly as
possible. I think in the end we will be able to
accommodate many or the majority of requests
our customers have, but there are going to be
some cases where there are constraints on
the seat supplier that might not accommodate
the exact combination of IFE and seats the
customer wants.”
But some players point to IFE – specifi cally
the vast array of new products and companies
in the sector – as part of the problem. “Th e
biggest question in my humble opinion is
what the IFE suppliers do. Seat manufacturers
are consolidating [but] this is not happening
with IFE. Th ere are more and more players;
this actually generates more work for the seat
supplier, which takes away from capacity,” says
aircraft seat consultant Kosta Gianakopoulos.
FEBRUARY 2012
FLY IN STYLE.
Lavish entryways,
communal spaces and
full-service bars are
among the features
now offered on new
widebody aircraft
For years, relations between seat suppliers and IFE manufacturers were
chilly at best. But demand for integrated IFE/seats for economy class paved
the way for a sea change in the industry whereby all parties work together
on integrated solutions before an airline places its order. Nonetheless, the
deployment of a new IFE system with a new seat is still “bloody”, notes
a source. “It’s messy. Th ere is a lot of cursing. Th ere are still tense times.
Depending on the individual you ask, some in the industry will say
relations are better; some will say they are worse.”
TALENT SCARCITY
Also putting pressure on the supply chain is the lack of skilled
aerospace engineers with necessary cabin experience. So, even in
instances where a company is an approved supplier to the aircraft
manufacturer, the question becomes – will that company be able to
actually support the supply chain?
“Th e airframers are worried about it because there are a number of
famous cases where airframers had to acquire suppliers to get them
back under control,” says a source. “You can just see this kind of
consolidation by big external groups buying up the smaller players,
taking on their product range and contracts but also getting the skilled
resources as well. Th ey are at the outer limit of being in control, and
something has to give.” IMAGES © AIRBUS S.A.S 2008, H.GOUSSÉ / © 2007 THE BOEING COMPANY/ © 2011 BOEING

STRESS RELIEF
Airlines and airports are fi nding creative ways to reduce passenger anxiety
while generating fresh ancillary revenue streams
WORDS BY RAYMOND KOLLAU ILLUSTRATIONS BY SPENCER WILSON @ SYNERGYART
38 Airports are stressful environments – they are
crowded, noisy places where it is easy to get
disoriented. Studies have shown that the airport
experience has signifi cant physiological eff ects on a
traveller’s anxiety levels.
According to social psychologist David Moxon, a number of
factors combine to make airports challenging to the human
psyche. “Humans are wired to experience stress in situations
where many feel out of control – and airports, where you
have to follow instructions that are likely to change at the last
minute and procedures that are unpredictable, lead many to
react with a stress response,” he says.
“Th ere is also what is known as an accumulation eff ect,
resulting from other anxieties that we may be harbouring.
If you head to the airport having worried about waking up
on time, what you’ve left behind at work, or if you really did
lock the front door, you will consequently feel a little bit more
stressed at the airport because you’re already harbouring all
these anxieties.”
UPSELLING
To earn much-needed extra revenues, full-service
airlines so far have mainly focused on low-hanging fruit
with their ancillary revenue strategies, introducing fees
for checked bags and monetising extra-legroom seats.
And all major US airlines, as well as European carriers
such as SAS and Iberia, have introduced paid catering in
economy class on short-haul routes.
But in today’s world of heightened security and congested
airports, there are opportunities for airlines to further
customise their product with value-added ground services,
FEBRUARY 2012
either by upselling them (for example, making premium perks
available for a fee to economy passengers) or cross-selling
additional services alongside customer touch points, such as
airport transfers, car rental and hotel accommodation.
Most notably in the United States, where full-service airlines
are more advanced with their ancillary activities, carriers such
as United-Continental, as well as low-cost airlines Southwest
Airlines and JetBlue Airways, off er travellers the option to jump
security lines for a small fee, board the aircraft earlier than their
fellow passengers in economy, and purchase day passes and
annual subscriptions to their airport lounges.

PRE/POST-FLIGHT
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40
“Travelling can be tiring, confusing, disjointed and unpleasant. The opportunities to build
brand loyalty – and revenues – by easing the process are still untapped”
JAMES WOUDHUYSEN
PROFESSOR OF FORECASTING AND INNOVATION, DE MONTFORT UNIVERSITY
However, when off ering perks normally reserved for business travellers
for a fee to other travellers, there is always the risk of diluting the premium
experience. For this reason, KLM is taking a cautious approach towards
off ering premium services for a fee. For example, the carrier limits paid
access to its lounge at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol to silver tier members
of its loyalty programme who travel in economy.
United-Continental, one of the most active airlines to monetise
premium perks, also says it keeps sales of its so-called Premier Travel
package (paid fast track, priority boarding and extra-legroom seat) limited
so that its elite fl yers won’t be denied the benefi ts they get for free.
CROSS-SELLING
Apart from looking at ways to improve the airport experience for nonpremium
passengers, airlines are beginning to study how they can
facilitate the entire door-to-door passenger journey.
According to a recent report by travel technology company Amadeus,
thinking laterally will be key for airlines to secure revenue streams in the
next decade. “Airlines will increasingly have to look beyond fl ight service
to make money,” says Amadeus’s Philippe Chérèque, one of the report’s
authors. “Th e travel experience itself, before or after the trip: there you
have a lot of things to be either bundled or added.”
For instance, says James Woudhuysen, professor of forecasting and
innovation at De Montfort University: “Ground transfers to and from
airports could be greatly improved for the traveller - something for which
many would be willing to pay.”
A good way to determine what kind of additional services on the ground
passengers would be willing to pay for, is to look at stress levels that air
travellers experience at the various stages of their journey.
FEBRUARY 2012
Research by UK retail consultants Pragma shows that as passengers
make their way to the airport, levels of anticipation and excitement rise.
However, so do levels of stress. Anxiety rises during the transfer to the
airport (will I make it on time?) and as a passenger approaches check-in
(where is the check-in desk? Are there queues? Did I remember to bring all
tickets and passports? Did I pack everything?).
STRESS PATTERNS
After check-in, stress levels temporarily fall as passengers breathe
their fi rst sigh of relief, but then there is the bottleneck of security and
passport control to negotiate. In addition to long queues at security and
immigration, the whole process can be very invasive, as passengers are
subjected to bag and body searches.
After security and immigration, stress levels remain high for a short
time while passengers orientate themselves and seek fl ight information.
Once these basic needs have been fulfi lled, stress levels fall considerably,
as passengers can relax prior to moving through to boarding, when stress
levels again increase as passengers worry about fi nding the right gate,
fl ight delays, and how their seat and legroom will be.
Besides the stress associated with take-off and landing, other
perceived obstacles include getting through immigration upon arrival,
waiting for the luggage to arrive and arranging the transfer to reach the
fi nal destination.
Th ese aspects of commercial air travel mean that, for example, four
out of 10 Britons who have fl own fi nd the airport experience stressful.
According to a recent research study by British credit card insurer CPP,
42 per cent of over 2,000 people surveyed said airports make them feel
stressed, with more than a third believing it is worse than work.

And although airlines work hard to streamline the airport experience
for the premium customers, research by SAS found the primary
contributor to stress levels for business travellers is the unpredictable time
for security screening (66 per cent), followed by travelling to and from
airports (19 per cent).
VALUE-ADDED SERVICES
Th e multiple peaks in stress levels that air travellers perceive during their
journey provide opportunities for airlines and airports to develop value
added services. Many airlines already off er hotel and car rental as part of
the booking process, but according to the Amadeus report, airlines could
be more actively involved in end-to-end transport. “Th is could include
making airlines travel facilitators for these customers willing to pay for
seamless travel by helping arrange baggage handling and travel to the
airport and hotels. It also could include more involvement and cooperation
with high-speed rail,” says Amadeus.
Here is a look at some up- and cross-selling initiatives on the ground
that airlines and airports around the world have come up with so far.
LUGGAGE
To eliminate the nuisance of hauling luggage to the airport and checking in,
many airlines in the United States have teamed up with a company called
BAGS, a TSA-approved remote skycap service that lets passengers check
bags from their home, offi ce, hotel, convention centre or cruise ship. Th e
service, which costs USD 20, consists of a document check, weighing and
sealing of the suitcases and their secure transport to the airport. Passengers
also receive their boarding passes, enabling them to go directly to security
screening and their gates. BAGS’ service is off ered at over 200 airports in the
United States, as well as many hotels, convention centres and cruise ports.
In Europe, TAP Portugal has teamed up with Skybags, which lets
passengers check in their bags at home or the offi ce for EUR 25. In
Switzerland, Swiss Rail’s Fly Rail Baggage, which costs CHF 20, allows
passengers to check their baggage the day before their journey at 50
railway stations across Switzerland. On arrival, passengers can also have
their luggage forwarded to their destination station in Switzerland.
Passengers who also want to skip the frenzy at baggage claim can opt
to forward their luggage via a parcel delivery service such as FedEx or
UPS. With the introduction of checked-bag fees by almost every airline
in the United States, this has become increasingly attractive. FedEx urges
travellers to “take the stress out” of their domestic travelling experience
by letting FedEx handle their bags. “You’ll be free to enjoy your vacation
or extended business travel without having to wait in lines.”
Potential customers for remote check-in services include seniors and
families with children, while passengers with large sets of sporting
equipment, such as golfers, surfers and skiers, are another key market.
AIRPORT TRANSFER
In Europe, airlines such as Lufthansa and Air France have agreements
with high-speed rail operators (AIRrail and tgvair, respectively) to provide
“intermodal” journeys, which combine air and train travel in one ticket.
In this way, the train eff ectively works as a feeder service for the airline to
its hub airport.
On a similar note, Hong Kong International Airport, which is located on
a man-made island, off ers high-speed ferry services for transit passengers
to and from the Pearl River Delta, home to around 60 million people.
Outbound passengers from the Delta can check their luggage and obtain
their boarding passes at four major ports in the area.
Austrian Airlines and Latvian-based airBaltic, meanwhile, have
launched their own branded taxi services in Vienna and Riga, respectively.
Th e Austrian red|cab service provides Austrian passengers with
transfers between Vienna and Vienna Airport for EUR 29 each way. Th e
taxis are operated by an external taxi company but sport the Austrian
name and logo. In Riga, airBaltic subsidiary BalticTAXI operates a fl eet
of 130 Toyota Avensis cars as a regular taxi service. Transfers between the
airport and Riga cost EUR 12 and passengers can purchase pre-paid taxi
vouchers aboard airBaltic fl ights. Austrian red|cab and BalticTAXI each
off er passengers a free daily newspaper, infl ight magazine and a bottle of
mineral water.
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42
PRE/POST-FLIGHT
CHECK-IN, SECURITY, BOARDING
At Vienna Airport, Austrian also off ers a premium check-in, security
and boarding service, called red|lane. For EUR 99, passengers fl ying with
Austrian can use Vienna Airport’s dedicated Priority Terminal, get through
check-in and passport and security controls fast, and relax in the lounge.
For boarding, passengers are taken directly to their plane by limousine.
In the United States, United-Continental’s Premier Line option gives
economy passengers priority access to specially reserved lines at checkin,
security and boarding. Th e service is off ered to a limited number of
customers each hour based on time of departure and costs USD 25 during
peak times, with a discount off ered during non-peak hours. Premier Line
is available at 26 airports in the United States and can be purchased online
at united.com and at the carrier’s airport kiosks.
Many passengers see security as one of the most stressful parts of
the travel experience, and despite advances in biometric solutions,
immigration and security screening have remained a bottleneck for
non-premium passengers.
In the UK, several smaller airports such as London Luton, Liverpool
John Lennon and Bristol Airport give passengers access to fast-track
security lanes for a small fee. At Luton, passengers can purchase priority
lane access for GBP 3 at kiosks, and the airport says the popular service is
used by 8,500 passengers a day on average, a fi gure that doubles during
peak travel periods such as Easter.
Boarding the aircraft is another source of anxiety among passengers.
It includes a lot of waiting in relatively small areas and then there is also
the question whether there will be enough space available to store one’s
luggage in the overhead bins.
Following earlier paid early boarding initiatives by low-cost airlines
such as Ryanair, easyJet and JetBlue, one of the fi rst full-service airlines
to launch paid priority boarding has been American Airlines. For a fee of
between USD 9 and USD 19, travellers can board the aircraft immediately
after premium passengers and frequent fl yer elite members, giving them
more time to stow their carry-on luggage and get comfortable in their
seat. Because fewer passengers check bags and take more and larger bags
FEBRUARY 2012
on board to avoid rising checked luggage fees, space in overhead lockers
has become increasingly scarce on fl ights in the United States. American
Airlines says it limits how many early boarding perks it sells by raising
prices as they become more popular.
PERSONAL ASSISTANCE
At a time when airlines are reducing face-to-face contact with customers
at airports, expanding the number of self-service options instead,
several airlines have created personal assistance services aimed at
business travellers, families, travellers unfamiliar with the airport, and
honeymooners looking to start their holiday in style.
American Airlines has recently made its Five Star Service, launched
four years ago for celebrities and VIPs, available to the general public.
Th e service assigns a personal airport assistant to help passengers fi nd
ground transportation, assist at check-in with baggage, and expedite the
security process, among other services, and is available at nine US and fi ve
international airports. American charges USD 125 per person per one-way
fl ight for the service.
A similar premium departure and arrival service is off ered by Portuguese
airline TAP under the name Personalised Assistance. Prices start at EUR 45
for help with luggage, check-in, security and boarding, and for EUR 140,
passengers are also transferred to and from the aircraft in a limousine.
Passengers at Lufthansa’s Frankfurt and Munich hubs can opt for the
airline’s Guide & Family Service. Th ey are met by a Lufthansa guide at their
gate who accompanies them through the airport and helps with queries in
their native tongue. Altogether the guides off er more than 50 languages and
the service costs EUR 50–400, depending on the number of passengers.
Although still limited and fragmented, several airlines around the world
have been making the fi rst steps in diff erentiating the travel experience at
the airport by providing passengers with a more integrated and stress-free
service, while earning some welcome additional revenues in the process.
De Montfort University’s Woudhuysen summarises, “Travelling can be
tiring, confusing, disjointed and unpleasant. Th e opportunities to build
brand loyalty – and revenues – by easing the process are still untapped.”

Who’s Been Sleeping in My House?
8 x 27’ HD
LIFESTYLE & ENTERTAINMENT
ABC Commercial
Entertaining
the world
Life Architecturally
1 x 54’ or 1 x 28’ HD
FACTUAL
Tonic
26 x 28’ HD
LIFESTYLE/HEALTH
Agony Aunts
6 x 30’ HD
COMEDY
Agony Uncles
6 x 30’ HD
COMEDY

44
“WE’RE FOCUSED ON BECOMING THE LEADER
IN THE FIELD FOR SMALL- AND MEDIUM-SIZED
AIRLINES… WE WON 12 NEW CLIENTS IN 2011”

ANDY MCEWAN, MANAGING DIRECTOR OF IFE SERVICES
LTD., ON THE CHANGING ROLE OF CONTENT SERVICE
PROVIDERS AND THE CHALLENGES FACING THE
PASSENGER EXPERIENCE INDUSTRY
Can you please provide a brief overview of
what your company does.
We work in the supply chain between
content suppliers and airlines as a Content
Service Provider (CSP). Not only do we
manage the provision of movies, television,
audio and applications, we also provide
portable entertainment solutions to airlines
and content for cruise liners. We also have an
original production team that produces safety
fi lms, destination fi lms, promotional videos,
entertainment guides and GUI design
and development.
We have about 50 clients, airlines and cruise
lines dotted around the globe, which gives us a
really nice capability to provide a broad range of
international and regional content. We’ve been
providing content to our longest-standing client
for almost 20 years now.
What do you believe differentiates
your company’s market offering from
that of the competition?
I feel that we’re very good at retaining our clients
and we do that by the quality of our customer
services staff , our technical staff and the value
add that we’re able to provide to our clients. Out
of those 50 clients, we lost only two last year
whilst about a third of them renewed. Also, the
quality of our sales and marketing staff is very
important – we won 12 new clients in 2011 –
both new airlines and new cruise lines.
We’ve been very successful at winning new
business because we’re focused on becoming the
leader in the fi eld for small- and medium-sized
airlines; we know we can do a great job for these
airlines in terms of account management and
technical management.
We have a very strong tech team here in
the UK and at our lab out in Irvine, California
which is of course right next door to Th ales
and Panasonic and just down the road from
Hollywood, so we’re able to give those small-
and medium-sized airlines a very strong level
of customer service.
In terms of scale, a medium-sized airline
probably has an annual IFE budget of up to
USD 7 million to cover content licensing and
the technical work required to deliver that
content to the aircraft.
Our clients include Iberia, South African
Airways, LAN Chile, bmi, Kenya Airlines, Royal
Caribbean and P&O.
What do you believe is the biggest challenge
facing the passenger experience industry at
the present time?
Whilst you have the early adopters of technology
changes in the airline industry, the real
substance of technical advancement in airlines
moves incredibly slowly. We heard a lot of buzz
about two years ago in Hamburg about the
introduction of the iPad, but two years down the
line, there’re maybe only three airlines that are
piloting the iPad onboard. My understanding is
that most of the companies that only provide
portable IFE solutions to airlines do not make
money – and they’ve been at it for years.
I do see portable devices as being part of an
airline’s long-term IFE strategy. Initially airlines
may provide their own studio-approved portable
devices, but ultimately I see passengers using
their own personal devices on board.
INTERVIEW
I think there’s going to be some growth in
the streaming area, particularly for the lowcost
airlines and I think everybody will be
supportive of that – streaming companies,
studios and the CSPs – because of the
incremental revenues that will be generated.
What are you looking forward to most in 2012?
Continuing our focus on organic growth and
adding additional growth through acquisition.
We’re at the stage now where we’re
generating a nice amount of cash each year;
we’re in a position where our business is
robust; we’ve got good processes, good quality
control, a good track record of delivering high
quality product at the right time and strong
relationships with the studios.
How do you see your company’s role
changing to adapt to the introduction of
streaming media to tablet devices and/or
passenger’s own devices?
We do not intend to invest millions of R&D
dollars into streaming technology. By the time
streaming has been adopted widely by the
airline industry, we hope to have something
like 70 to 80 airlines on our books and will bring
our own technical and account-management
experience to bear when partnering with
diff erent streaming technology providers.
What changes do you anticipate in the
licensing models for future IFE content?
I think for low-cost airlines with narrow body
aircraft, pay-per-view is defi nitely the way it’s
going to go for passengers.
I think that CSPs, studios and a few streaming
companies will get together and establish
revenue-share models which will provide some
incremental revenue for the studios.
For airlines where studios have an established
fl ow of revenue, I think they’ll only put a
portion of that established revenue stream
into the risk calculation for a revenueshare
basis.
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THE NEED FOR
SPEED
In the race to equip aircraft with infl ight connectivity, airlines
are jockeying to position themselves in the superfast lane
WORDS BY WILL HORTON
EVERY DAY, the internet is fi lled with tweets,
Facebook status updates and emails eagerly
announcing a passenger’s fi rst experience using
infl ight connectivity. Even the Black Eyed Peas
pay homage to antennae and radomes in one of
their songs: “fast internet/ stay connected in a
jet/ wi-fi , podcast/ blasting out an SMS”.
Airlines expect infl ight connectivity to
become a loyalty draw and a source of ancillary
revenue. But the rush to outdo or catch up to
the competition is only valid if an airline has a
compatible solution.
Some industry stakeholders believe airlines
should extricate themselves from the scuttle and
evaluate their customer proposition and how
much bandwidth they require.
“Th ere’s a sensational demand for bandwidth.
Th e technology will never catch up. It’s like the
IFEC
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48
IFEC
’80s and ’90s and looking for a faster computer,” says Michael Small, president and CEO of Gogo,
which supports infl ight internet over a dedicated air-to-ground (ATG) network in the United States.
But he is adamant that “no one will be able to satisfy bandwidth needs better than [Gogo].”
CONNECTIVITY RAMP UP
Th e Chicago-headquartered fi rm, which owns an exclusive ATG broadband licence, has certainly
met with some successes. It counts AirTran Airways, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air
Lines and Virgin America among its customers.
US low-cost giant Southwest Airlines went in a diff erent direction to its rivals when it tapped
California-based Row 44 to provide Ku-band, satellite-supported connectivity to its fl eet of Boeing
737s; about one fi fth of the fl eet has been equipped.
But another low-cost carrier, JFK-based JetBlue Airways, believes it has found an even better
mousetrap than Gogo and Row 44. In 2007, the carrier became the fi rst to trial infl ight connectivity
when it equipped a single Airbus A320, dubbed Beta Blue, with a narrowband “Kiteline” ATG system
provided by its own subsidiary LiveTV.
Today, passengers still see JetBlue as being in beta: that single A320 is the carrier’s only connected
aircraft in an airspace fi lled with passengers tweeting away on Gogo and Southwest’s internet
service via Row 44. Yet JetBlue is fi ne with that. “We want to do things our way,” says JetBlue
director of product development, Rachel McCarthy.
FEBRUARY 2012
“There’s a sensational demand for bandwidth.
The technology will never catch up. It’s like the
’80s and ’90s and looking for a faster computer”
MICHAEL SMALL
PRESIDENT AND CEO, GOGO
Kiteline restricted how JetBlue could
customise the system and had limited
bandwidth. “It wouldn’t be sustainable over
a longer period of time when more and more
customers want to use it. So we said it’s a great
proof of concept, but it’s not going to be where
we want to be for the next 10-15 years.” Th e
carrier ruled out Gogo on the same grounds.
Instead, JetBlue will provide what it believes
is the current pinnacle of infl ight connectivity:
a high-speed, Ka-band service from provider
ViaSat. Its LiveTV unit will manage the
integration of the ViaSat broadband components
aboard the aircraft, as well as lead the
certifi cation process and handle installations.
United-Continental has also selected the
ViaSat/LiveTV Ka product for some 200 Boeing
aircraft operated domestically by Continental,
while the carrier has opted for Panasonic
Avionics’ Ku solution for the rest of its
mainline fl eet.
Airlines and providers continue to debate
Ka’s feasibility timeframe. Unsurprisingly,
those banking on it are most bullish, and
McCarthy says that, when ViaSat’s Ka switches
on in late 2012, it will let JetBlue “leapfrog the
competition”. For passengers, Ka could off er
speeds of up to 50 Mbps, compared to reported
typical speeds of 1 Mbps for Aircell and 30
Mbps for Row 44. ViaSat off ers JetBlue more
bandwidth but also the ability to regulate the
amount, as well as “complete” pricing fl exibility.
McCarthy points to the December 2010 Google
promotion of free access to Gogo as an example
of how the capacity of the prevalent ATG service
can be easily strained. During the promotion,
Gogo became inundated with users, who
reported sluggish speeds.
“[Gogo] is successful in off ering connectivity
to a limited number of customers, but the
challenge is if you’ve got a full aircraft with
everyone wanting to use it, they can’t off er a
product they’re promising,” says McCarthy. “We
have the ability to grow with Ka, as opposed to

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IFEC
‘Gosh, there’s more than 10 people on the plane
who want to use it – we’re stuff ed.’”
Gogo’s Small dismisses such arguments.
Next year, Gogo plans to switch on ATG-4,
which will be faster and off er more bandwidth
over ATG yet require only “modest change” to
ATG-equipped aircraft.
TECHNOLOGY ROADMAP
ATG-4 is part of Gogo’s planned portfolio
of solutions to accommodate diff erent
aircraft sizes, and thus bandwidth and speed
requirements. “I suspect regional jets are happy
with our ATG technology. A 737 might go to
ATG-4, and maybe a 757 or 767 that fl ies over
the US with a lot of passengers might add Ka to
supplement the ATG-4,” says Small.
Indeed, Ka is fi rmly on Gogo’s technology
roadmap; London-based Inmarsat recently
selected Gogo as a partner to bring Inmarsat’s
Ka-supported Global Xpress aeronautical
service to the commercial market. Airbus/SITA
joint venture OnAir was also picked to distribute
Global Xpress.
Until Ka rolls out, Aircell is willing to off er Ku
as a bridging solution to airlines, but Small does
not recommend it.
“It costs three times as much to install, it takes
longer, it weighs more and bandwidth costs are
more expensive than ATG,” he says. “Avoid Ku
if you possibly can.” For international fl ights, he
advises airlines to wait for Ka and in the interim
emphasise to passengers the embedded IFE
systems typically off ered on international aircraft.
For Southwest, which is equipping its fl eet
with Row 44’s Ku, the carrier has straddled
wanting a solution and yearning for speed.
Marketing manager Angela Vargo says
Southwest’s contract with Row 44 gives it
ATG’s deployment-ready status with a Ka-like
connection, and an added bonus: a portal.
Like JetBlue, Southwest says owning the
product and being able to set prices and
promotions “is very key for us”. It plans to
fi nish fi tting its 737-700s with Ku by 2013
and later determine the timetable for its other
737 variants. But it is not talking about the
connectivity future of Gogo-equipped AirTran,
which it acquired last year.
Vargo says Southwest has not run into any
FEBRUARY 2012
FUTURE PROOF
Airlines are having to decide
whether to install connectivity
systems that meet today’s
demand or tomorrow’s
bandwidth-availability problems, but is also not looking to cut back. “I don’t think in this world you
can have too much bandwidth,” she says. Th e carrier is keeping an eye on Ka’s development. And its
partner Row 44 is studying an upgrade path.
“We don’t ever want to put our customers in a position to not be forward upgradeable,” says Row
44 chief commercial offi cer, Howard Lefkowitz. “[Our platform] is future compatible in the event the
future comes to bat. For airlines that care about their market share, you don’t want to give yourself
dial-up access. You also don’t want to wait for the future thing that may or may not happen.”
A new portal, being developed by Row 44, will be rolled out by Southwest. “It’s extremely
important,” Vargo says of the portal, which will be branded and include “robust entertainment
options”, ways to relay messages to passengers, advertising and e-commerce opportunities that
Southwest expects will contribute to overall revenues, though it declines to say by how much.
INTERNATIONAL LANDSCAPE
Outside the United States – which does not permit the infl ight use of cell phones – mobile
connectivity currently dominates the landscape, though Ku providers Row 44 and Panasonic have
made inroads.
SITA/Airbus joint venture OnAir has secured a laundry list of customers for its infl ight GSM
service, which operates via Inmarsat’s L-band-based SwiftBroadband aeronautical service.
“When individuals have the choice, 95 per cent of passengers use the GSM network,” says OnAir
CEO Ian Dawkins, who highlights the rising infl uence of mobiles. “We’re seeing something that’s
just beginning and going to explode over the next fi ve years.”
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IFEC
“For airlines that care about their
market share, you don’t want to give
yourself dial-up access. You also
don’t want to wait for the future
thing that may or may not happen”
Dawkins sees connectivity primarily as a
service and not an opportunity to frolic in piles
of cash. “It’s something that will not necessarily
make airlines a lot of money but it will pay for
itself. Th ere is a value in having connectivity to
the aircraft, which a lot of the large airlines are
starting to recognise.”
Many of those airlines off er connectivity
on wide-body aircraft performing long-haul
fl ights, but Brazil’s TAM is focusing on its shorthaul
domestic network. “Th ey see their singleaisle
fl eet as moving lots of business people
from city to the next city,” says Dawkins. “Th ose
business travellers want to be connected.”
On the long-haul front, Cathay Pacifi c
is among a growing list of carriers to select
Panasonic’s infl ight internet solution together
with a GSM off ering from Panasonic partner
AeroMobile – both are operated via Ku.
Driving equipage, says Cathay head of
product Alex McGowan, is not ancillary revenue
opportunities but the benefi t to passengers. “As
a premium airline with a focus on the business
traveller, it’s the right thing for us to do.”
KEEPING COSTS DOWN
Cathay also intends to off er a device-neutral
pricing model by having separate rates for
iPhones and smartphones, BlackBerries and
laptops based on expected passenger usage:
iPhone users will mainly want to update and
use applications, not browse the internet,
FEBRUARY 2012
HOWARD LEFKOWITZ
CHIEF COMMERCIAL OFFICER, ROW 44
PROFIT VERSUS VALUE
Airlines are divided not only
about how to connect their
aircraft to the internet and
mobile phone networks, but
what to charge passengers
for that connectivity
while BlackBerry users can check email with little data usage, although the rates will be for
unlimited usage.
McGowan expects typical usage per passenger will be around 20MB on a long-haul fl ight, but
notes “there may be one user in a 100 or one user in a 1,000 who stays awake for an entire 15 hours
surfi ng the internet and they will use more than the price they paid.”
Cathay’s unlimited rates will not be married to eye-gouging prices: for a long-haul fl ight, it
expects to off er iPhone connectivity for “well under USD 10” and support BlackBerries over GPRS
for around USD 5. “It’s trying to be as fair as we can be and it’s trying to be as aggressive as we can
be with pricing,” McGowan says.
Th at will be a relief to the blogger who, dismayed at connectivity costs, wrote a post entitled
“For the love of God, don’t use your iPhone on Air New Zealand’s new Airbus fl ights.”
Th e Kiwi carrier’s partnership with OnAir and Vodafone charged NZD 3.50 (around USD 2.70 at
the time of writing) per minute on outgoing calls and NZD 20 (USD 15.40) per megabyte of data.
“Th ere’s a reason your iPhone has an airplane mode,” iPhoNewZealand blogger, known only as
Steve, wrote. “We can only imagine that the Air New Zealand/Vodafone partnership doesn’t
actually want you to use infl ight data, as it’s the only possible explanation we can think of for such
completely outrageous pricing.”
OnAir’s Dawkins, although not directly responding to this incident, has another suggestion:
“Th e majority of people who use phones don’t ever see their bill.” Additionally, he notes, people who
travel a lot understand what their international roaming rates are like.
But McGowan believes business travellers do care about pricing. Cathay negotiated the rates
AeroMobile and Panasonic would charge, of which it receives a share. “You should charge for a fair
price for a high-value product. Th at’s what we pushed our partners, AeroMobile and Panasonic, to do.”
Dawkins concedes Ku band currently off ers more capacity than OnAir’s L-band solution, “but the
reality is, when you’ve got fl eets of [Ku] aircraft, you will then have less capability and capacity than
L band.” Nor is the current bandwidth demand a problem for OnAir. “On aircraft with very high
usage, we only see 10 per cent of our capacity actually being used per aircraft,” Dawkins says.
Pricing for infl ight GSM is also expected to come down. “We’re seeing mobile phone operators
start to recognise that there are a lot of people fl ying and what we’ll see happening in the New Year is
people will receive information in their bill off ering them specifi c packages if they fl y.”
Meanwhile, as a newly named distribution partner for Inmarsat’s Global Xpress, OnAir will soon
start off ering superfast Ka to airlines. Further details will emerge over the next year, says Dawkins.
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54
FEBRUARY 2012

Industry expert Michael Childers opines how fi le-based workfl ow and a more effi cient contentdelivery
supply chain can rapidly speed delivery and potentially save early window in the process
WORDS BY MICHAEL CHILDERS ILLUSTRATIONS BY INFOMEN @ DEBUTART
IFE’S HOLY GRAIL, the early-window movie, is
under threat of defenestration by a signifi cant
collapse in windows of availability, and an
ineffi cient content-delivery supply chain that
struggles to keep pace.
When the APEX Technology Committee met
in Burbank, California last November, a panel
on IFE industry trends disparaged the current
content-delivery cycle for taking up to 45 days.
Panasonic and Th ales recently said they’re
looking to reduce the cycle to as little as 10 to
15 days, and one new player in the contentdelivery
supply chain said that content could be
“on-plane within one week from order”. So why
is it so slow now?
Th ough IFE content-delivery has migrated
from analogue to digital, it remains heavily
dependent on tape-based delivery. Meanwhile,
other markets are making the transition to fi lebased
workfl ows much more rapidly.
Such a transition, of course, would mean
signifi cant structural changes to the IFE
content-delivery supply chain. Transferring fi les
over networks such as SmartJog is faster and
more secure than physically transferring tapes,
and such networks now play a large role in IFE.
But IFE’s digital-content supply chain is not yet
an end-to-end network, and, more often than
not, begins with tape.
APEX’s Digital Content Management
Working Group (DCMWG) was founded more
than 10 years ago with the mission of moving
the IFE content-delivery supply chain from
physical media delivery (like tape) to network
delivery. But instead of pursuing its original
mission, DCMWG has become absorbed with
standardising encoding. Th e quest for network
delivery has been replaced by a quest for fi lebased
workfl ow and the process of encoding has
given way to that of transcoding.
“A fi le-based workfl ow is a precise, accurate
and repeatable set of operations that can be
applied to fi le-based content,” says Ed Elliott,
senior solutions architect with Technicolor’s
Digital Delivery Group, a new entrant in the
IFE industry.
“Th e migration from encoding (the initial
conversion from tape to fi le) to transcoding
(the conversion of one fi le format to another fi le
format) has the potential to reduce unique and
repetitious and therefore ineffi cient encoding,”
says Elliott.
INTEROPERABLE MASTER FORMAT
Annie Chang, VP of post-production technology
at Th e Walt Disney Company and an advisor
to DCMWG, was an early proponent of the
Interoperable Master Format (IMF). Chang chairs
the Society of Motion Picture and Television
Engineers’ working group charged with
developing an IMF standard.
IMF will result in “a single, interchangeable
master fi le format [capable of] automated
packaging and delivery, [and which] minimises
CONTENT
storage and simplifi es post-production
transcodes”, says Chang. According to
Chang, IMF is designed not for archiving but
as a business-to-business tool; it wraps its
components in track fi les and supports output
profi le lists with global parameters.
IMF will codify the standards by which highlevel
digital fi les (with metadata) are created at
the front of the content-delivery supply chain
for repurposing downstream. It will support
the requirements of all markets for each unit
of content. IMF is the ultimate implementation
of the principles of digital-asset management
(DAM), which call for archiving digital assets
at a high level, cataloguing them for access
by market users, repurposing them to the
requirements of each market, and delivering
them over a network.
Without standards for interoperability of
master elements at the front end, content
providers – companies such as the major studios
that own or are proprietors of IFE licensing
rights – are left without a uniform starting point.
And while various forms of network delivery
have entered the supply chain for certain legs
of the journey, tape-based fi les have remained
stubbornly part of the process – particularly in
markets like IFE.
Under DAM, all the content components and
value-adding elements are stored in a single
container. Th is includes the components referred
to as “essence” – audio and video. One more
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
55

56
FEBRUARY 2012
component is necessary for the fi le to become
“content” and that is metadata (audio + video
= essence; audio + video + metadata = content).
Metadata, remember, is data that defi nes other data
and determines how it is used.
A range of elements is necessary for the full
exploitation of content in each market.
And one of the principles of DAM is that these
elements are created and aggregated during
pre-production processing so that they become
available without delay when windows of
availability open, allowing market circumstances,
“Media can be on-plane within one week
from order” – Ed Elliott, Technicolor
and not post-production issues, to dictate when and
how content moves through these windows.
Under DAM, these elements are aggregated in an
archive for long-term back-up and into libraries for
exploitation. Th e high-level, all-inclusive fi le that
makes these elements available to be repurposed
to the needs of the marketplace is called a
mezzanine. Chang explains that IMF comes
after this archiving and is intended to reduce the
number of redundant libraries needed to support
the marketplace.
TRANSCODING VERSUS ENCODING
Th e old method of preparing content for digital
exploitation is to encode the elements into a
fi le that compresses unneeded data and plays
back the remaining data at bit rates or data rates
specifi c to particular markets. Variations to that
encoding require a new encoding,
which duplicates the original cost.
Th e new method is transcoding:
you go to the mezzanine, call
out the necessary elements and
parameters, and a customised fi le is delivered
through a network for integration into your
content set. Because transcoding is cheaper
than the process of encoding and recall, you
are not tied to a single, rigid standard as you
are with encoding.

Most traditional IFE post-production facilities
have transcoding capabilities. Not all of them
have pursued this option aggressively, however,
leaving the door open for new entrants into
the IFE space. Th e business model based on
encoding, multiplexing and recall fees (when
an encoded fi le is put in the post-production
provider’s library and each subsequent use of the
fi le incurs a recall fee) has become entrenched in
the post-production industry. Transcoding can
make things cheaper for the buyer, particularly
in a multi-market, DAM implementation.
“DAM is the process of identifying,
quantifying, qualifying and storing content
such that it can be searched, retrieved,
repurposed and archived in a mechanised and
effi cient manner,” says Elliott. “A robust and
capable DAM system is the root of a competent
workfl ow process.”
Th e DAM model makes a catalogue open to
multiple markets (ideally, all markets); it also
means fewer duplicate libraries. If more users
across multiple markets access the mezzanine,
it drives down costs. By comparison, service
providers serving a single market or a limited
number of markets are at a disadvantage.
CENTRALISATION OF ASSETS
Th e DAM model, then, emphasises
centralisation and re-use of digital assets at a
time when IFE content service providers (CSPs)
have been encroaching on the post-production
space, creating redundant libraries and
decentralising assets. CSPs represent airlines
that license content from content providers, and
perform services on their behalf.
Th e encoding process has gone from one
involving weeks of work using complex and
expensive equipment to one that takes just
a little longer than real-time using far less
complex and expensive equipment. Realtime
encoding means that a 120-minute fi lm
is encoded in 120 minutes, but IFE’s quality
standards may require hours more.
Th ere are 22 CSPs in IFE by last count, and a
CONTENT
large number of them have entered the postproduction
space, off ering reduced rates for
encoding services. Particularly in the case of
non-movie content, some CSPs have assumed
the cost of encoding from content providers and
profi t from reselling the encoded fi les.
A combination of changing technology
and increased competition has driven down
encoding rates. However, reducing rates is not
the same as reducing aggregate costs, and if one
unit of content were to be encoded redundantly
by 22 CSPs, the aggregate costs of encoding that
unit would be higher unless the rate was 1/22nd
of the previous rate. While individual rates
might fall, the aggregate cost to the industry
could be driven up by redundancy.
No doubt airlines will fi nd declining
encoding rates enticing. But the reality is that
the infrastructure making this possible is
potentially more expensive in the aggregate than
transcoding from a mezzanine - depending, of
course, on the rate structure for such transcodes.
Last year, long-time technology executive
Bryan Rusenko left Crest Digital, a traditional
post-production provider, to become VP of
strategy and technology, IFE, for Technicolor,
which is bringing its DAM services to IFE.
Technicolor’s MediAffi nity is a DAM service
that converts tape to digital fi les and then to
master, mezzanine and proxy fi les that can be
accessed to transcode fi les to the requirements
of the end user.
While Rusenko’s division focuses on IFE,
Technicolor’s DAM service is designed to serve
multiple markets simultaneously. Under the
broadest vision of DAM, every market, from
digital cinema’s 2K and 4K fi les, to premium
television’s 1080p and 720p, to IFE’s 480p, would
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
57

58
CONTENT
IMF will result in “a single interchangeable master file
format, [capable of] automated packaging and delivery”
– Annie Chang, VP of post-production technology,
The Walt Disney Company
use the same digital assets rather than duplicate
ones. According to this vision, post-production
facilities designed to service a single market or
small segment of markets become redundant.
If these basic assumptions are refl ected
in real-life pricing and practice, fi le-based
workfl ows are faster and less expensive than
tape-based workfl ows, transcoding is faster and
less expensive than encoding, and multi-market
service providers can spread overhead over more
users than uni-market providers.
Similarly, this means that the maintenance
and storage of redundant fi les created for a single
market and duplicated across as many as 22
libraries will be potentially more expensive than
the maintenance and storage of a single library
that serves all or multiple markets, all other
things being equal.
CHANGES IN INFRASTRUCTURE?
Th e implications do not bode well for a
decentralised, highly redundant and highly
specialised post-production infrastructure. If
fi les can be transcoded from the mezzanine and
moved across networks with few, temporary or
no local storage requirements, then IFE content
FEBRUARY 2012
integration could become a cloud-based process
performed by the hardware provider who best
knows its own systems.
Still, if the current content-delivery
infrastructure in IFE compromises the future
of early window, then looking at an alternative
supply chain infrastructure is justifi ed.
“An effi cient and well-designed supply chain
for the IFE sector absolutely has the possibility
of dramatic reduction in [content] time-tomarket,”
says Elliott. “Leaving out issues
surrounding order and licensing approvals,
the mechanical aspects of order placement
against a digital library, the subsequent
preparation, transcoding and delivery up to the
point of loading the media prep servers can be
accomplished within 48 hours in most cases.
“Th at means that usually — excepting the
delivery of physical media for airframes that
require extended transport times — media can
be on-plane within one week from order.”
ENDING THE MONTHLY REFRESH CYCLE?
Of course, one of the major issues with earlywindow
IFE is the slavish adherence to the
monthly refresh cycle. Movies are made
available for exhibition in IFE a certain number
of days from theatrical release – most often 90
days, sometimes 60, occasionally something
else. But movies don’t open theatrically only
on the fi rst of the month as they do in IFE. If
a movie opens theatrically on the 10th of the
month, and is made available to IFE 90 days
later, the time from the 10th of the release
month until the fi rst of the following month is
eff ectively squandered.
“One of the major improvements of a
sophisticated supply chain for IFE will be
the elimination of the concept of ‘monthly
refresh’ of content; the industry can move to
a continuous rolling update of content to take
maximum advantage of license windows,”
says Elliott.
Th e next couple of years will see major
changes coming to IFE content-delivery. Th ey
will include an increase in high-defi nition
content and even some very limited 3D. Most
likely, they will see a signifi cant move to
fi le-based delivery and the elimination of the
monthly content refresh cycle. And we haven’t
even begun to talk about MPEG-DASH.
Stay tuned!
Editor’s Note: Th is article contains the opinions of its
author and individuals interviewed for its content. Th ese
opinions may not necessarily be the opinions of APEX,
this magazine, or its publisher. Th e expression of diff erent
viewpoints is welcome.

60
ROOM WITH A VIEW
This photo of the Boeing 787’s
wing was snapped from the only
onboard lavatory with a window

LIVING THE
DREAM ON
BOARD THE
BOEING
AN AVIATION BLOGGER
GIVES A FIRST-HAND
ACCOUNT OF A FLIGHT
ABOARD ONE OF THE FIRST
DREAMLINERS TO GO INTO
REVENUE SERVICE
WORDS BY DAVID PARKER BROWN
PASSENGER
Many travellers believe that the golden age of
fl ying has passed and will never be seen again.
But Boeing is looking to improve the fl ying
experience for airlines and customers – in
addition to improving its bottom line –
with the 787 Dreamliner, a twinjet, widebody
aircraft that could usher in a new era for
passenger satisfaction.
After three long years of delays, All Nippon
Airways (ANA) offi cially took delivery of its
fi rst Boeing 787 Dreamliner on 25 September
2011. “Th e 787 transformed concepts into
inventions and inventions into this aeroplane.
As we all know, the journey to here was not
easy or smooth, but breakthroughs never are,”
says Pat Shanahan, Boeing’s VP and general
manager of Commercial Airplane Programs.
Once ANA’s two 787s arrived in Japan, they
were readied to take their fi rst commercial
fl ights one month later, on 26 October.
I was invited to evaluate the passenger
experience on one of the two twinjets during a
90-minute service that left two days later from
Narita International Airport (NRT), located just
outside Tokyo, Japan.
Th e check-in process for passengers on the
VIP fl ight went smoothly. After receiving
our tickets, going through security and
experiencing a short wait at the gate, we lined
up to board buses to be taken to ANA’s second
787, registration number JA802A. Our bus
rounded a corner at the airport and the two
Dreamliners, which were parked next to each
other, came into view. What a beautiful sight!
After spending a short time on the tarmac
taking photos, everyone boarded and prepared
for the excursion.
One of the fi rst things passengers will
notice when boarding the 787 is the advanced
lighting system. Th e 787 off ers adjustable LED
lighting that can set mood and even make the
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“The 787 transformed concepts into inventions and inventions into this aeroplane”
PAT SHANAHAN, VP AND GENERAL MANAGER, COMMERCIAL AIRPLANE PROGRAMS, BOEING
JAPANESE DREAM
Above: ANA’s second 787 (JA802A) waits for people to board at Narita Airport
Below: ANA’s fi rst 787 (JA801A) sits in the distance while their second Dreamliner boards / All ANA
Boeing 787 Dreamliners will carry Rolls Royce Trent 1000 engines / The “787” on the side of the
fuselage makes it easy to identify this aircraft as the new Dreamliner
PASSENGER
cabin seem larger. Airlines have 128 colour
combinations to choose from for their cabin
lighting. To help demonstrate this feature’s
potential, ANA chose a colourful rainbow
setting during the fl ight’s boarding process
– impressive though perhaps not typical for
standard operations.
Th e 787 was fi lled with enthusiastic, excited
passengers, who exuded such a high level of
energy, it radiated throughout the cabin. Even
though many onboard were not necessarily
aviation enthusiasts or airline professionals,
they knew this fl ight was going to be special.
A few minutes after its scheduled departure,
the 787 pushed back from the gate. Th e Rolls-
Royce Trent 1000 engines produced a quiet yet
powerful sound. After a short taxi to the active
runway, the engines were put to full throttle
and the 787 gracefully accelerated to take-off
speed and lifted off . Passengers in the cabin
responded by giving a hearty round of applause
to the plane and the crew.
BIGGER WINDOWS ON THE WORLD
I was seated in 9D, an aisle seat in the middle
section of the aircraft. I was curious to see how
easy it would be not only to view the outside
through the larger windows, but also to take
photos and video. Th e windows are about
30 per cent larger than those found on other
comparable airliners. Th is translates to better
views, even if you’re not in a window seat.
Th e new windows do not have a pulldown
shade like other aircraft. Rather, the
Dreamliner’s windows have an auto-dimming
function with fi ve diff erent grades of tint
that stay partially transparent, even at the
darkest setting. It is not a quick transition and
takes about 30 seconds to get from completely
clear to the darkest setting. Flight attendants
have master control over all the windows,
and as such, do not need to lean over sleeping
passengers to raise or lower the shades.
Our fl ight was only 90 minutes long, so the
cabin was quite busy with passengers trying
to check out the various amenities and catch
views of Japan and Mount Fuji. Th e airline
didn’t off er a full meal service, though we were
served water, juice or coff ee, and a special
787-cookie dessert.
ANA’s fi rst two Dreamliners feature a shorthaul
domestic confi guration. Th ere are 12 seats
in business class with a 2-2-2 layout and 252
seats in economy class with a 2-4-2 layout. Th e
economy seats have a fi xed back shell that do
not recline, but passengers can move their seat
cushions a few inches forward.
Each economy seat provides a 10.6” touchscreen
seat-back monitor and a remote
control to access ANA’s selection of 160 TV and
movie programmes, games and a seat-to-seat
chat service. “We’d like to provide the IFE
capability that we usually have in our house.
We like to provide the same type of capability
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
63

64
PASSENGER
in the aeroplane as well,” says Kinichiro
Suetsugu, an ANA employee. Panasonic
Avionics supplies the IFE.
Airlines will be able to confi gure the cabin
with a maximum of nine seats abreast in
economy. A Boeing executive in 2010 described
how the 787 is capable of supporting many
seating confi gurations: “You’ll see herringbone
on this aeroplane. You’ll see six-across, nineacross,
eight-across and even seven-across.
I’ve seen it all. Airlines like that because they
know their business best and they know how to
earn revenue best. And for some airlines, nineacross
in coach and a six–abreast business class
is the right answer. For another airline, they
might want an eight-abreast premium across in
the middle. We give them that fl exibility. Th ey
could do business nose to tail if they want. Th ey
have that fl exibility.”
In the front of the cabin, ANA’s business
class seats off er a cradle design with a recline
angle of 160 degrees. Long-haul international
confi gurations will feature the carrier’s new
“business staggered” product, which has
already premiered on some of ANA’s Boeing
777-300ERs.
ANA’s fi rst two 787s have a bar area inside
the main doors and between business and
economy, but it is unlikely that many domestic
versions of the 787s will have these bars. Th e
airline is planning to update these Dreamliners
in the future with the addition of a premium
economy, so perhaps the bars will be removed
to accommodate this change.
Off ering a premium economy product on the
787 opens up big revenue potential for airlines.
Some airlines will simply increase the pitch
of economy-class seats, but others may go a
step further and off er a seven- or eight-abreast
confi guration in addition to more pitch.
FLUSH WITH SUCCESS
Meanwhile, the ANA 787 that I had the pleasure
to fl y on had seven lavatories, but the one
I suggest passengers should explore is the
third on the port (left) side. Th is lavatory is
special because it has a window to the outside
providing amazing views of the ground below.
No matter what class of service you are
sitting in, you will fi nd that, with just a wave of
your hand, every toilet on board will fl ush and
the seat will lower automatically during the
fl ush cycle. Each toilet on board the ANA 787
also had a warm bidet function, which is found
in most bathrooms around Japan.
Passengers will enjoy more overhead bin
storage space for their carry-on bags and the
bins are designed to provide more headroom
when closed.
Th e Dreamliner’s use of composite materials
makes it possible to make the cabin more
comfortable during fl ight with improved
humidity and cabin pressure. Since our
excursion fl ight was short, it was diffi cult to
FEBRUARY 2012
“This revolutionary new aircraft will transform air
travel for passengers and help ANA in its strategic
goal of becoming Asia’s number one airline”
SHINICHIRO ITO, PRESIDENT AND CEO, ANA
CUTTING EDGE IFE
Above: Invited guests get situated before taking their fi rst 787 fl ight
Below: Even though ANA’s infl ight entertainment system provides a wide variety of options,
most passengers chose to look out of the large windows

66
PASSENGER
determine if these innovations will make a
large diff erence on a typical fl ight. I wonder
if this might be one of those features that
passengers are not likely to notice directly, but
will benefi t from nonetheless.
Luckily our fl ight did not hit too much
turbulence, but if we had, the bending
capability of the carbon fi bre wings would
allow the aircraft to absorb some of the impact.
Th e 787 also has a vertical gust-suppression
system whereby the aircraft automatically
detects turbulence and compensates, a
design that is said to reduce motion sickness
for passengers.
After fl ying around Japan, the 787 started its
descent back to Narita. Th e landing was smooth
and the aircraft was greeted with another
round of applause from passengers.
Th e new Dreamliner is not only benefi cial to
passengers but also to the airlines who operate
them. ANA is hoping to save about USD 131
million per year in fuel costs operating the 787
versus other aircraft. Due to the smaller size
of the aircraft and the fact that it can be fl own
over 8,000 nautical miles, airlines are able to
provide non-stop point-to-point service on
many more routes.
On 1 November 2011, ANA started operating
two 787s on its Haneda-Okayama and Haneda-
Hiroshima routes. More 787 deliveries will
follow. ANA is using these aircraft to connect
to international destinations, including Beijing
and Frankfurt.
FLYING THE FUTURE
Th e 787 is an important part of ANA’s vision of
growth and service to their customers. “Th is
revolutionary new aircraft will transform
air travel for passengers and help ANA in its
strategic goal of becoming Asia’s number
one airline,” says ANA president and CEO
Shinichiro Ito.
I have no doubt that passengers fl ying
the Dreamliner for the fi rst time will be
impressed by the aircraft’s revolutionary
advances in performance and comfort. Th e
subtle improvements of the 787 were not fully
appreciated by me until my return to the United
States on a Boeing 777. Th e 777 is a comfortable
modern aircraft but new technology advances
such as those installed on the Dreamliner will
eventually make current aircraft seem dated.
While Boeing’s fi rst test aircraft, ZA001,
was offi cially retired in early December, its
third aircraft, ZA003, has been retrofi tted
with a full interior, replacing the test interior.
Th e aircraft is currently fl ying around the
world as part of Boeing’s Dream Tour, which
allows the airframer to highlight the benefi ts
of the new aircraft to passengers, airlines
and the media. Th e aircraft made a muchcelebrated
stop at the Paris air show in 2011.
Judging by the fl ight I took, this is only the
very beginning of its success.
FEBRUARY 2012
COMFORT AND COLOUR
Top: This is ANA’s domestic business class seat. International 787s will offer ANA’s new staggered business seat
Middle: Passengers don’t need to pull down window shades on the 787. Every window has fi ve different tinting options
that passengers can alter with the push of a button
Bottom: To show off all the colour options of the 787’s LED lights, ANA featured a special rainbow colour scheme
for boarding

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DANGER AHEAD?
IN 2011, 200 AVIATION PROFESSIONALS WORLDWIDE
COMPLETED AN ASCEND SURVEY ABOUT THEIR
PERCEPTION OF AIRLINE SAFETY. THE RESULTS SHOW
THAT 52 PER CENT BELIEVE AIRLINE SAFETY WILL STAY
THE SAME OR GET WORSE OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS
“Is there anything that airlines could do to help
those of us with a fear of fl ying? Could there be
an area of the plane where we could be seated
together to provide each other with support?”
FIGHTING BACK FEARS
AIR TRAVEL HAS NEVER BEEN SAFER, YET MANY ARE
STILL PETRIFIED TO FLY. A WORKING MUM DESCRIBES
HOW SHE COPES BY POPPING A PILL… OR TWO
WORDS BY AMANDA SMITH
BOSTON, HE SAID. Th e word burned my ears as I suppressed
the tears welling up in my eyes and tried to quell the panic
that was rushing over my body like a wave. I would be fl ying
to Boston for a business seminar. I took a deep breath and
attempted to process the words that had just been spoken to
me. Six months before, I was relieved when my employer had
cancelled our national meeting in Texas and rejoiced in the
fact that I would not be trapped in a metal tube for fi ve hours.
But now, I was emailing our travel department to make
arrangements for a fl ight in less than a month. I was terrifi ed.
When I arrived at the airport, it seemed cold and
uninviting to me. Luckily, I found a familiar face, Starbucks,
and washed down my fi rst anti-anxiety pill. When my fl ight
was called, I consumed a second little white pill, and slowly
walked towards the gate. Th ere I discovered that, instead of
boarding a large aircraft via a jet bridge, I was expected to
climb aboard a small commuter aircraft that resembled a bus.
But this bus had wings and was going to take me to Boston.
I struggled up four steps and entered a tiny cabin with
approximately 50 seats. I sat down, strapped myself in and
waited. With the medication working, I started to feel more
relaxed. Two hours later we landed; my fears subsided for the
time being. Tomorrow, I would have to do it all over again.
As I sat at my company’s seminar in Boston, I wondered if
there was anything airlines could do to make travel a little
easier for people like me, people who have a very real fear of
fl ying. Th ere are so many of us and our reasons are varied.
Some of us worry that our plane will plummet to earth in a
fi ery ball of fl ames. If greeted by surly crewmembers or shabby
interiors, we might wonder what kind of job the airline is doing
to keep the plane safe. Others are claustrophobic and afraid
of being confi ned in small or tight spaces. Th e stress of travel
might also feed the separation anxiety that some parents feel
when they are away from their families.
Is there anything that airlines could do to help those of us
with a fear of fl ying? Operationally, I know there is no easy
answer. But I wonder if it would be benefi cial for worrywarts
to be permitted to board early to meet the pilots/crew, tour
the plane and cockpit, and review where the exits are located.
And could there possibly be an area of the plane where we
could be seated together to provide each other with support?
As a self-proclaimed “anti-fl yer”, I am not quite sure what
can be done. I am simply appalled by the fact that I am scared
to fl y. It keeps me from visiting places I want to see, and
prevents me from applying for job positions that will require
me to fl y. For now, I am keeping my feet on the ground. But
some day I would like to reach for the sky.
FOR MORE NEWS, VIEWS AND A PLATFORM TO SPEAK YOUR MIND, GO TO THE APEX EDITOR’S BLOG AT BLOG.APEX.AERO
PASSENGER
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
69

70
CLASS ACTS.
This page: the bar in British Airways’
Galleries Club lounge in Heathrow Terminal 5
Opposite page, from left: the bar,
greeting room and seating area in
Delta’s Sky Club lounge in Indianapolis

LESSONS
IN
WORDS BY BENÉT WILSON
LOUNGING
International airlines
are setting the standard
in airport lounges
PRE/POST-FLIGHT
Just as no two airlines are the same, operators
take diff erent approaches to their lounges.
In the United States, domestic-airline lounges
mainly serve as oases for premium passengers
to get away from the masses, relax, catch their
breath and enjoy some hors d’oeuvres or a few
drinks. But it is on the international stage where
airline lounges truly shine.
Th e Galleries lounges in British Airways’
fl agship Terminal 5 at London Heathrow are
a prime example of how some carriers go the
extra mile to provide luxurious lounges for their
most-prized customers, and with good reason –
airport lounges have become important tools for
airlines, says Henry Harteveldt, chief research
offi cer and co-founder of Atmosphere Research
Group, where he oversees the fi rm’s airline
and travel industry practice. Lounges help
to “visually and tangibly enforce an airline’s
brand image. Th eir decor, amenities and service
levels help to establish and reinforce what an
airline is about.”
THINGS REMEMBERED
Lounges can leave a lasting impression. A few
years ago, I used BA’s Galleries Arrivals lounge at
Terminal 5, and I still remember how delighted I
was to be able to take a shower, have my clothes
pressed and my shoes shined, and spend a bit of
time in the Elemis Travel Spa.
BA’s VIP and fi rst-class customers have
access to Th e Concorde Room, which features
three hotel-style suites with bathrooms, a
separate gourmet dining room and bar, a
terrace with fantastic views of the airport and a
conference room with seats from BA’s nowdefunct
Concorde fl eet. BA has defi nitely set a
very high bar.
Another carrier hitting the mark is
Emirates, which has three lounges at Dubai
International Airport’s Terminal 3: the pay-foraccess
Marhaba Lounge, which is open to all
travellers; the business-class lounge; and the
fi rst-class lounge.
Th e business-class lounge covers around fi ve
gates and seemed like a never-ending tunnel,
says Nate Vallier, a concierge for the Cranky
Concierge travel-assistance service and a former
airline employee, who posted his thoughts on
IMAGES OPPOSITE PAGE © NEWSCAST/BRITISH AIRWAYS / THIS PAGE © PHILIP FICKS
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
71

72
SETTING THE BAR.
Clockwise from top left: British Airways’ fi rstclass
lounge in Heathrow’s Terminal 5;
the drinks bar in BA’s Galleries Club lounge;
the Concorde Room in BA’s fi rst-class lounge
FEBRUARY 2012
the subject on Th e Cranky Flyer. “It was the
biggest lounge I’ve ever been in. It’s designed
in little clusters that include areas with tables
and a buff et stand with free food and drinks and
attendants everywhere.”
Th e lounge also features a sectioned-off area
that has seating pods with between eight and 12
chairs, says Vallier. “Some have sofas and some
have TVs, but each area has diff erent colours and
features the elements – fi re, earth, water and
air. Th e further back you go into club, the less
crowded it gets.”
Th ere is also a separate business centre with
Wi-Fi and computers. Th e lounge has a fullservice
spa that off ered massages, pedicures,
manicures and facials for a small fee, says
Vallier. “It didn’t have a restaurant, but there
were numerous food and beverage stations, and
they catered to everyone.”
Vallier’s one criticism was the wait for
showers. “Th ere were only 10, and there seemed
to always be a line, which could last anywhere
from 10 minutes up to a half hour.”
But, according to Vallier, the Emirates fi rstclass
lounge is out of this world. “Th e entrance
has a 12ft [3.7m] fresh fl ower bouquet that is
changed every three days. It features a typical
check-in desk, with four agents and a gentleman
in a suit to handle VIPs. Th ere are defi nitely
more employees in here than in the businessclass
lounge, and they’re always asking if you
need help.”
Th e seating areas were fewer and more private
than in the business-class lounge. And there is
a restaurant that serves three-course meals 24
hours a day, “with a buff et attached that serves
eight hot and eight chilled items”, notes Vallier.
“If you want something and the chef can make
it, he will.”
Th e lounge also features a wine store where
passengers can participate in tastings, a massive
tea bar and a spa off ering free treatments.
Th e Emirates lounges were very clean
considering how busy they get, observes Vallier.
“I have seen garbage and mess in United Airlines’
Red Carpet Clubs and US Airways Club, and that
wasn’t the case in any of Emirates’ lounges,” he
says. “All in all, it was a very unique experience.”
HIGH CLASS
According to Atmosphere Research Group’s
Harteveldt, there is no question that
international carriers outside the United States
tend to have the best lounges. He cites as an
example the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse at
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Lounges help to “visually and tangibly enforce an airline’s
brand image. Their decor, amenities and service levels
help to establish and reinforce what an airline is about”
HENRY HARTEVELDT, CHIEF RESEARCH OFFICER AND CO-FOUNDER,
ATMOSPHERE RESEARCH GROUP
London Heathrow, Cathay Pacifi c’s business and
fi rst-class lounges at Hong Kong International
Airport and Qatar Airways’ separate premium
terminal at Doha International Airport.
Th ese lounges are successful because they are
based on brand image and provide services and
amenities that travellers want.
In the United States, Harteveldt gives high
marks to Delta Sky Clubs. “Delta is in the process
of redoing its clubs with an eye toward better
seating,” he says. “Many seats have electric
outlets, and there are tables and counters so
travellers can do work on their laptops. Th e clubs
also have a good food and beverage off ering.”
Harteveldt also praises American Airlines’
Admirals Clubs, noting that many have showers
and seats with power outlets.
US Airways Clubs are the least impressive,
says Harteveldt. And United – now United-
Continental – neglected its Red Carpet Clubs
for far too long , while Continental never had
a leading-edge experience with its Presidents
Club. “As United and Continental continue with
their merger, it will be interesting to see what the
new United Club experience will be,” he adds.
SHOW ME THE MONEY
In certain instances, airport lounges are
generating revenue for the airlines. “Some of the
larger clubs have full meals ready for purchase.
Th at allows them to keep money that might
HUB COMFORTS
Top: the bar in BA’s Concorde Room at Heathrow Terminal 5
Bottom: the tea and coffee station in BA’s Galleries Club lounge
IMAGES © NEWSCAST/BRITISH AIRWAYS
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
75

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PACIFIC PLEASURES.
Cathay Pacifi c has invested a lot in getting
its lounges right in its Hong Kong hub.
Clockwise from right: the canteen, the
reception area and the bar
©
otherwise go to airport concessionaires,” notes
Harteveldt. In the past, US airlines traditionally
looked at lounges as cost centres, he observes.
“Now the airlines sell memberships and day
passes and see their lounges as profi t centres,”
he says. But “you can just tell that US carriers
continue to focus on cost containment rather
than customer service.”
Harteveldt warns that airlines have to ask
themselves the following question: are lounges
profi t centres or are they a privilege that’s part
of a ticket bought by their best customers? Th e
question gets more interesting when you put
airline alliances into the mix.
“US airlines are more mercenary and
commercial in their approach to lounges, while
fl ag carriers reserve their lounges for those who
paid for fi rst or business-class tickets or are
premium members,” says Harteveldt.
Looking ahead, Harteveldt sees a trend
emerging whereby some travellers with status
and travelling on a qualifying ticket will use
alliance partner lounges rather than a specifi c
airline’s facility.
“For example, some people travelling on
American or United will use Oneworld or
Star Alliance lounges that are available rather
than use a US lounge,” he explains. “By doing
this, you can better control the experience for
customers and be more cost effi cient.”
Harteveldt notes that at London Heathrow,
there are lounges in Terminal 1 for Star
Alliance carriers and Terminal 4 for SkyTeam
carriers. “And in other airports, I see airlines
consolidating and sharing lounges,” he says.
“American and Japan Airlines just announced
they will combine lounges at Honolulu
International Airport, while in Seattle, Delta’s
Sky Club also serves travellers travelling on
other SkyTeam alliance carriers.”
CHANGING WITH THE TIMES
Lounges have also evolved over the past 10 years
with the advent of laptops and Wi-Fi. “Travellers
used to go to them in order to relax and have
a drink. Now they are places – especially for
business travellers – for trying to be productive,”
says Harteveldt. “You can do things like hold
conference calls or send email. You have to give
airlines credit for adding things like electric
[power outlets] to help with this. It is not
inexpensive to do, and it has been noticed.”
Future competition for airline lounges will
come from the airports themselves, many of
which are investing to make public areas more
accommodating, with better seating, better
food and beverage, work carrels and Wi-Fi,
says Harteveldt.
“Airports are saying, ‘you don’t have to go
behind frosted glass doors to have a good airport
experience,’” he says. “Look at San Francisco
International Airport’s new Terminal 2 –
it’s heaven on earth, with Italian-designed
seating, organic food for sale and top-end
retailers like Kiehl’s.”
Airports realise that they’ve got a great
captive audience and they are competing with
their airline tenants, adds Harteveldt.
IMAGES © CATHAY PACIFIC
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
77

78
NEWS FOOD
FEBRUARY 2012
THE NAME GAME
SHOULD WE CARE ABOUT CELEBRITY CHEF MENUS?
WORDS BY GUY DIMOND ILLUSTRATION BY JAMES CAREY @ DEBUTART
THE DECISION as to which airline to fl y is usually
based on three factors: price, schedule and – to
a lesser extent – the airline loyalty card you use
most. But how many of us are swayed by seeing
a celebrity chef’s name on the menu?
Celebrity chef endorsement of airline meals
became a trend in the 1990s. Chefs have always
consulted for airlines, but there was a step
change when Singapore Airlines, already the
gourmet leader, appointed a “culinary panel”
of high-profi le chefs in 1998. Th is panel, which
followed a raft of signings of top toques to other
carriers, was intended to trump the competition.
Th e airline even published a volume of its
airline-meal recipes in 2010. Th at’s right – a
book that shows you how to cook airline meals.
Above and Beyond, as the cookbook is called,
doesn’t challenge Jamie Oliver or Delia Smith
in the bestseller lists, and doesn’t appear on
Amazon.com. Th e purpose was not to create
a bestseller but a statement of intent: we are
serious enough about food to hire the top chefs.
On one business class Air New Zealand fl ight
to Auckland, I was happy to discover that the
menus were devised by Peter Gordon. Th is
London-based Kiwi was then the hottest chef in
town, so this was a smart move by the airline.
But do I remember the vanilla-poached salmon,
or the snapper with yuzu-braised fennel and
macadamia salsa? To be honest, no. I do recall the
leg-room, the comfy seats, and the calm of the
long-haul business class fl ight.
I suspect, and hope, that chefs do well out of
airline consultancies. Most earn remarkably
little from running restaurants; their real
income comes from trading on their celebrity. I
once interviewed an in-transit Gordon Ramsay
in Tokyo, who told me that he “never has to pay
for a fl ight” because he consults to Singapore
Airlines. Which is probably no bad thing for his
fellow passengers, as the 6’1” former footballer
doesn’t travel well in economy.
But how does consultancy actually translate
to the plate? We don’t expect Neil Perry, Marcus
Samuelsson or their peers to be manning the
defrosters in person, but do you really get
any sense of the their magic at all in a meal
that’s been stored for air freight and reheated?
Michelin inspectors don’t award any airlines
stars, and neither should we. Airline meals
should be good, but to expect them to replicate
a three-star dining experience is absurd.
Most of us want our meals to taste good, and
be interesting and diverting – and if they can
achieve all of that, then I don’t think any of us
care whose name is attached to them.
HAVE QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ABOUT APEX? TELL US WHAT YOU THINK AT INFO@APEX.AERO
TOP CHEFS
TAKE FLIGHT
THREE OF THE WORLD’S MOST
PROMINENT CHEFS PUTTING
THEIR NAME TO AIRLINE FARE
MARCUS SAMUELSSON
ABOARD AMERICAN AIRLINES
Ethiopian-born, Swedish-raised
Samuelsson’s Nordic-infl uenced fi ne
dining at Aquavit in New York City is
what got him noticed. Now his new
Harlem restaurant, Red Rooster, is also
making a stir.
PETER GORDON
ABOARD AIR NEW ZEALAND
New Zealand-born, London-based
chef-proprietor of Providores. Low-key
Gordon is greatly respected as one of
London’s most creative chefs, and also
as a great culinary ambassador for his
country of birth.
GORDON RAMSAY
ABOARD SINGAPORE AIRLINES
London-based chef-restaurateur and
professional TV celebrity. Best known
for his TV persona as the foul-mouthed
chef with the quick temper, Ramsay
also manages to run a tight ship at his
score of restaurants around the globe.
IMAGES REX FEATURES

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27. - 29. March 2012, Hamburg Messe, Germany.
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80
FEBRUARY 2012
WHAT’S
BEHIND
THE CURTAIN?
Aircraft cabin design has evolved over the last few decades, with signifi cant
amounts of creativity and innovation having been brought to bear on every
inch of the cabin – with the exception, it would seem, of the galley area
WORDS BY JONATHAN NORRIS
Commercial aircraft galleys have remained virtually unchanged for
the last 40 years – a hotchpotch of scruff y aluminium boxes, battered
catering carts cobbled together and hidden away behind the curtains.
Th e galley is the one area of the aircraft cabin that has remained
relatively untouched by industrial and aesthetic design. It’s the last
piece of the patchwork quilt approach to cabin design, and relies
purely on the rugged and functional.
Over the last few years, however, we have started to see some
signifi cant developments in the elements of the galley such as the
galley inserts (known as GAINs) and catering carts, as well as in the
design of completely new integrated galley “monument systems”
with the focus on improved functionality and reduced weight.
One of the major challenges for airframers and the cabin supply
chain has been airlines’ insistence that galleys should be highly
customised to their specifi c requirements and local standards.
As the production rates for single-aisle aircraft at both Airbus and
Boeing nudge north of 40 aircraft per month, it is essential for them
to decouple cabin customisation from aircraft section build and
fi nd new ways of satisfying airline requirements for customisation
without jeopardising production. Th is challenge is further
complicated by the fact that many airlines expect long-range aircraft
functionality and customisation on their short-range fl eets.
Th e customisation lead times (ie, e, the time between airline
customisation defi nition and aircraft raft delivery) will have to be in the
order of eight months for the Airbus us A350 XWB and Boeing 787 to
sustain the projected production rates. Th is represents a 50 per cent
reduction in lead time from the 11-13 1-13 months lead time typical for
the Airbus A330 and Boeing 777. In n eff ect, this means that a galley
supplier may have only about 14 weeks to manufacture, assemble
and test a shipset of customised galleys alleys (with all galley inserts)
before delivery to the airframer.
While traditionally galleys have ve been multi-source Buyer
Furnished Equipment (BFE) products, ucts, the major airframers are now
off ering only single-source Supplier lier Furnished Equipment (SFE)
galleys on new long-range aircraft ft developments such as with B/E
Aerospace on the A350 and Jamco o on the 787.
“Th e galley has been one of the e bottlenecks for the aircraft
manufacturing schedule and if we proceed with standardisation,
we believe we will be able to shorten rten the lead time of the galley,”
says Hiroshi Uchijo, manager of new interior planning and
development at Jamco.
When asked about the challenges ges to introduce single-source SFE
galleys on the 787, Uchijo says, “Our Our design is very fl exible to ensure
that they can meet their requirements ments whilst remaining within the

SPICING UP THE HUMBLE CART.
Main image: Airbus Airbus SPICE folding
service cart with full-size meal box
Insets, from top: Airbus SPICE
folding service cart with recycling recycling
setup / Airbus SPICE caterer
mobile device with full-size meal
box / Zodiac Driessen Hybrite
lightweight trollies
CABIN INTERIOR
APEX X | AIRLINE PASSENGER EX EXPERIENCE
81

82
CABIN INTERIOR
FEBRUARY 2012
choices listed in the aircraft catalogue.”
Craig Cunningham, VP and GM cabin interiors for B/E Aerospace,
says that being the single-source supplier of galleys for the A350
has brought “logistics integration of the galley system, including the
GAIN, making the supply chain far easier to manage”.
“Early involvement in the aircraft platform – being involved from
the outset - defi ning the envelopes of the galleys, their interfaces
and locations of the galleys allowed us to give the airlines the most
space effi cient solutions within the constraints of the standards
available today.”
Cunningham adds, “Further improvements can be made by the
technical integration of the various galley systems into the galley
module so that we’re no longer talking about a box within a box.”
In parallel, the airframers have moved to reduce the permutations
of galley standards and layouts off ered with both Airbus and Boeing,
only off ering ATLAS standard galleys (the prevalent galley standard
utilised on over 80 per cent of the world’s commercial aircraft fl eet)
on the A350 and 787.
Th is is forcing those airlines, such as Cathay Pacifi c and KLM, that
are still using the KSSU galley standard (originally introduced by
KLM, SAS, Swissair and UTA) to move over to the ATLAS standard if
they wish to take delivery of A350 or 787 aircraft.
While airframers and vendors alike experienced major pushback
from the airlines fi ve years ago when this shift was fi rst announced,
many airlines now realise that if they work proactively and early on
“The galley has been one of the bottlenecks for
the aircraft manufacturing schedule and if we
proceed with standardisation we believe we will
be able to shorten the lead time of the galley”
HIROSHI UCHIJO, MANAGER OF NEW INTERIOR PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT, JAMCO
FIT TO TRAVEL
Top left: Typical galley storage
confi guration on an Airbus A320
Bottom left: SPICE Door 4 galley
confi guration during airline service trials
This image: Typical galley/GAIN
confi guration on an Airbus A330
in the initial aircraft development, the signifi cant majority of their
requirements can be accommodated within the choices available in
the A350 and 787 SFE catalogues.
Interestingly, despite this change for the galleys, the industry
appears to have settled for a multi-source SFE model for GAIN.
Th is is hardly surprising as over the last few years, there has been
a proliferation of GAIN coming onto the market with a wide array
of functionalities: microwaves, freezers, rice cookers, espresso
machines and induction ovens to name but a few.
Even catering carts have not escaped the need for innovation and
the streamlining and controlling of the supply chain. On the A350,
for example, Airbus has elected to encourage airlines to choose from
the SFE selection of carts off ered in their catalogue. However, having
realised that this may not be acceptable to some airlines, they also
off er a route to accept alternative, non-catalogue carts.
IMAGE © AIRBUS S.A.S 2010 - PHOTO BY E X M COMPANY/P.MASCLET

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DRIESSEN
CABIN INTERIORS
Galleys & Equipment

GALLEY HEAVEN.
Zodiac Driessen modular
galley concept for A320
family aircraft
SPICE RACK.
Airbus SPICE preparation
galley with extendable bar area
KITCHEN PANELS.
Zodiac Driessen modular
galley concept for A320
family aircraft
“Further improvements can be made by the
technical integration of the various galley
systems into the galley module so that we’re no
longer talking about a box within a box”
CRAIG CUNNINGHAM, VP AND GM CABIN INTERIORS, B/E AEROSPACE
Marc Groenewegen, director business development at Driessen,
says, “With respect to trolleys, we’re looking to improve ergonomics
for the crew, lighter weight and a focus on design. Personalisation is
also important for the airlines – so a nice-looking trolley is essential.
Th ese can be branded or carry advertising through a sublimation
process which allows any image to be displayed on the side of the
trolley.”
IATA, with the support of Airbus, Boeing, Bombardier and
Embraer, conducted a survey in 2010 with aviation experts from
airlines (including cabin crew), caterers, airframers and equipment
manufacturers to determine what has prevented the industry from
progressing further on this matter.
Th e survey, conducted across 39 diff erent airlines, aimed to
assess the current state of the infl ight catering industry, explore
the feasibility of achieving true global galley standardisation,
and determine whether galley standardisation could become an
industry initiative focused on simplifying the business, eliminating
ineffi ciencies and delivering signifi cant benefi ts.
Th e two issues with the greatest impact on IATA members are
the higher fuel consumption related to heavy, old-generation galley
equipment, and galley equipment imbalances amongst catering
facilities that have to work with multiple galley standards.
Other issues that IATA members asked to be addressed included
fl ight delays due to galley equipment incompatibility, late aircraft
deliveries due to galley-related delivery problems and cabin crew
absenteeism related to galley injuries (the number one cause of
cabin-crew injuries).
A number of global galley standardisation initiatives are ongoing
within the industry, including the move by Airbus and Boeing to
introduce single-source SFE galley policies using ATLAS-based
ARINC 810/812 standards on the A350 and 787 respectively and IATA
radio-frequency identifi cation (RFID) specifi cations for infl ight
catering equipment management.
“We expect galleys to become lighter and also modular – modular
because they can then be easily reconfi gurable – so airlines can
change routes, destinations and also make seasonal changes – and
easily take out an oven, coff ee maker or boiler and use that space for
storage or something else,” says Groenewegen.
When asked about his views on standardisation for the galley
inserts, Groenewegen says, “Without standardisation, plug and
play will never work. Th e galley inserts should be interchangeable
between short-haul and long-haul aircraft, so standardisation brings
down the costs for airlines.”
SPICE is a galley concept developed by Airbus and is the result of
extensive investigation into the needs and requirements of the airline
community over a number of years. Due to the signifi cant benefi ts
that SPICE off ers, Airbus believes the concept has the potential to
become the fi rst new industry-wide standard for galleys.
To save weight and space, SPICE puts today’s standard airline
meal-trays into lightweight modular boxes instead of trolleys, and
utilises foldable service carts to transport the boxes during the
CABIN INTERIOR
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
85

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A
B
C
D
E
Multi-Function Access Point (above ceiling)
Telephony Server (in overhead compartment)
n Printer (on flight deck)
Network Control Panel (in galley)
Network Server, Ethernet Switch
and Application Server ( in electronics bay)
In-Arm
CAN YOU FIND VT MILTOPE IN THIS PICTURE?
B
A
C
E
D

FUTURE GALLEY
Clockwise from top left: B/E Aerospace Essence
range of GAIN / B/E Aerospace beverage maker
/ Jamco’s snack bar for Qantas A380 / Jamco’s
economy class self-service bar for Qantas A380
passenger service. With these changes, Airbus believes that
SPICE can save 400-600kg (882-1,323lb) of weight and enough
space to gain two to three economy seats on a typical widebody
aircraft seating 250-300 passengers.
SPICE features plug-and-play galley equipment enabling
“Without standardisation, plug and play will never
work. Galley inserts should be interchangeable
between short-haul and long-haul aircraft”
MARC GROENEWEGEN, DIRECTOR BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, DRIESSEN
airlines to implement route-specifi c menus or adapt onboard catering
to changing passenger tastes as well as allowing full interoperability
of galley equipment across aircraft types. Th rough improved
workspace ergonomics and the use of the transfer table, the number
of cabin crew injuries can be signifi cantly reduced through the
elimination of lifting heavy boxes.
Airbus has been working very closely with airlines and airline
caterers over the past two years to make SPICE ready for service, and
many testing activities are already completed. Airbus is planning for
SPICE to be available for aircraft deliveries early in the next decade.
In many respects, the aircraft business is a conservative one where
major changes are slow to materialise, particularly those requiring
standardisation changes and signifi cant investment.
Following the survey, IATA concluded that 87 per cent of airlines
believe that true global galley standardisation is a goal worth
pursuing. However, only 56 per cent of airlines believe the industry is
ready to face this challenge.
Major concerns cited by the survey include the levels of service,
and therefore equipment requirements that are unique to each airline
- 63 per cent of airlines prefer to control galley and galley equipment
design themselves - and the level of investment required to initiate
an industry-wide change.
CABIN INTERIOR
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
87

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90
NEWS AMENITIES
COPY THAT!
AIRLINES ARE LEARNING FROM THE BEST
TO UNDERSTAND HOW TO IMPROVE
THE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE – THE
PASSENGERS THEMSELVES
WORDS BY STEPHANIE GEHMAN
IT’S NO secret that many travellers are frustrated
with the fl ight path that infl ight amenities have
taken. Road warriors know that economyclass
travel is not nearly as comfortable as it
was in the golden era of Pan Am jet service and
that many amenities included in the airfare of
yesteryear now require an additional fee.
To make trips more bearable, modern
travellers are loading their carry-on baggage
with gadgets and travel accessories. But what
could airlines do to make fl ying more palatable?
First, they need to pay attention to the
things their customers are bringing aboard.
Apple iPods, tablet computers and e-readers
such as Nooks and Kindles lead the pack of
must-have items for many passengers stuck
in steerage. A robust playlist of good music, an
interesting movie or a favourite book are among
the preferred ways to drown out the sound of
rhythmic snores or screaming babies coming
from the passengers around them.
Some airlines have taken notice and are
off ering Apple iPads and Samsung Galaxy Tabs
as part of their in-fl ight entertainment. Jetstar
and airBaltic are among the carriers that have
been introducing tablet computers as an IFE
option for economy-class passengers.
With smart devices comes a desire for infl
ight Wi-Fi, a service that is now available
on myriad domestic US fl ights and a growing
number of aircraft in the international fl eet.
In-seat power is also extremely important to
passengers. A quick trip to www.seatguru.com
lets them determine which fl ights (and even
which economy seats) off er power.
FEBRUARY 2012
But not everyone brings their work and
reading along with them on the plane. Many
travellers are quite happy to doze while at
cruising altitude, and will stow everything from
neck pillows and mini blankets to eye masks
and sleeping aids in their bags for those longhaul
fl ights.
“If money were no object, I would love to
see each passenger in coach spoiled with a
‘welcome kit’, complete with noise-cancelling
earplugs, a sleep mask, a sample-size
hand sanitiser, wet wipes and, of course,
free Wi-Fi,” says fl ight attendant and travel
writer Beth Blair.
New premium-economy cabins may
ultimately prove to be the place where such
amenities are off ered. Passengers fl ying on
Delta Air Lines’ Economy Comfort on long-haul
routes, for instance, already receive a moist
towel and free alcohol.
We may never see a return to the halcyon
days of Pan Am service. But it’s clear that
airlines are trying to improve the travel
experience for passengers. Flightblogger editor
Jon Ostrower notes, “A smile and a thank you
from your crew can be the best amenity of all.
And it doesn’t cost a cent.”
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92
THAT’LL DO NICELY,
SIR!
NEW PAYMENT
METHODS COUPLED
WITH INFLIGHT RETAIL
CAN GENERATE
ESSENTIAL AIRLINE
ANCILLARY REVENUE
WORDS BY JONATHAN NORRIS

In the last few years a focus on driving up
ancillary revenue has become an absolute
necessity rather than a nice-to-have for the
majority of airlines. According to the Amadeus
Yearbook of Ancillary Revenue, a study jointly
undertaken by Amadeus and US consultancy
IdeaWorks, airline ancillary revenue has grown
from a modest total of USD 2.45 billion in 2007
to USD 21.46 billion for the 47 airlines that
disclosed ancillary revenue activity in their
2010 accounts. Ancillary revenue is considered
to be any revenue beyond the sale of tickets that
is generated by direct sales to passengers, or
indirectly as a part of the travel experience.
IdeaWorks says the four main categories
of ancillary revenue are: à la carte features,
commission-based products, frequent fl ier
activities and miscellaneous sources such as
advertising. Th e fi rm estimates that for a typical
major US airline, the sale of frequent fl yer miles
accounts for 50 per cent of ancillary revenue,
while baggage fees contribute 20 per cent. Th e
remaining 30 per cent comprises other à la carte
services, onboard retail and website retail.
Th e volume of ancillary revenue generated by
airlines is quite staggering. For example, in 2010,
United-Continental topped out the ancillary
revenue league table at just under USD 5 billion.
As far back as 2009, Glenn Tilton, now nonexecutive
chairman of United-Continental said,
“Unbundling works. Th e revenue generated from
these products and services is now a proven and
meaningful contributor to United’s bottom line.”
Ancillary revenue generated as a percentage of
total revenue provides an even better measure of
ancillary aggressiveness and marketing acumen.
Allegiant Air achieved a colossal 29.2 per cent
of its total annual revenue in both 2009 and
2010 through ancillary revenue as compared to
United-Continental with 14.7 per cent of total
revenue. Allegiant’s 2010 annual report says,
“We believe by off ering a simple base product at
an attractive low fare we can drive demand and
generate incremental revenue as customers pay
additional amounts for convenience they value.”
Sceptics who believed AirAsia X’s longrange
à la carte service model was fl awed
were confounded when in 2010 the Malaysian
carrier jumped into the number-one position
for ancillary revenue generated per passenger.
Th e long-haul arm of AirAsia earned EUR 29.45
per passenger in 2010 compared to EUR 17.07
INFLIGHT SERVICES
per passenger in 2009. In October 2011 Tony
Fernandes, CEO of AirAsia, told Air Transport
World, “We’ve always maintained that instead
of raising fares for higher yields – running the
risk of dampening air travel – we’d rather keep
fares at reasonable levels so as to attract higher
passenger loads and boost revenue through
ancillary services.”
“Ignore the opportunity provided by à la carte
fees, ancillary revenue and unbundled products
at your own peril,” says Jay Sorensen, president
of the IdeaWorks Company.
THE INFLIGHT RETAIL COMPONENT
Th e aircraft cabin continues to be the single
place within the travel journey continuum
where airlines have their passengers’ complete
attention. From an infl ight retail perspective,
the ABCs of the commercial air traveller are
that they’re affl uent, bored and captive, and
therefore represent signifi cant revenue potential.
Generation Research, which surveys, analyses
and documents the global duty free and travel
retail market, says that the global infl ight retail
business in 2010 was worth USD 2.7 billion –
representing about seven per cent of the whole
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
93

94
INFLIGHT SERVICES
travel retail market. In its 2008 report,
Surfi ng Aloft, Forrester Research states that
62 per cent of leisure air travellers are
willing to pay for movies they choose,
and 46 per cent for live television.
To maximise these revenue
opportunities, airlines must become
increasingly savvy retailers and bring ever
more diverse and innovative products
to market. In its 2010 ancillary revenue
report GuestLogix says it’s time for a
new model of which there are three key
tenets: “Turning travellers into consumers,
putting a retail store in every cabin, and
utilising Wi-Fi as a means to an end, not
an end unto itself.”
Some airlines, in conjunction with
their infl ight connectivity partners,
are now off ering free Wi-Fi access
to “walled gardens” in an attempt to
keep the passenger within their retail
partners’ stores and therefore increase
ancillary revenue. As GuestLogix puts
it, “Unharnessed Wi-Fi reduces itself to
instant commodity and leaves signifi cant
money on the table.”
At the Airline Retail Conference held in
June in London, Travis Christ, chief sales
offi cer at Row 44, said the Californiabased
company’s Ku-band satellitesupported
connectivity system allows
airlines to “make the infl ight experience
fun, productive and profi table” and that
airlines could generate “incremental
revenue from 35 cents to USD 5 per
boarded passenger”.
PAYMENT OPTIONS
American Express’s old advertising strapline,
“Th at’ll do nicely, sir!” is based on
giving customers the option of paying the
way they want to pay. In its recent Airline
and Travel Payments Innovations white paper,
ANNUAL FINANCIAL DISCLOSURES OF ANCILLARY REVENUE
2010 RESULTS 2009 RESULTS 2008 RESULTS
POSTED BY POSTED BY
POSTED BY
47airlines 47airlines 35airlines
$21.46 BILLION
€15.11 BILLION
FEBRUARY 2012
$13.47 BILLION
€10.95 BILLION
Source: Amadeus Review of Ancillary Revenue. Results by IdeaWorks issued 31 May 2011.
payments specialist Adyen notes that it
is tempting to think that the payment
methods used in an airline’s home
market are global. “Th ere are, however,
vast diff erences. Germans, for example
have credit cards but are not great users of
them. And cash is still king in many Latin
and Asian countries.”
Many believe that tailoring
payment methods to local markets is
a key innovation for increasing sales.
Southwest Airlines, for example, during
its presentation at Airline Information’s
Airline and Travel Payment Summit
discussed how its partnership with PayPal
has brought in new customers for the carrier.
In contrast, though, there is one form of
payment for infl ight sales that has rapidly
fallen from grace – cash. Many airlines
have moved to cash-free cabins so as
to free up the cabin crew from having
to make change, which can hold up the
$10.25 BILLION
€7.68 BILLION
“Unbundling works. The revenue
generated from these products
and services is now a proven
and meaningful contributor to
United’s bottom line”
GLENN TILTON
NON-EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN, UNITED-CONTINENTAL
2007 RESULTS
POSTED BY
23airlines
$2.45 BILLION
€1.72 BILLION

IFE
Web-based
For th the
e pa past
st ddec
decade, ec ecad ad a e, e Gue GuestLogix ue u st s Lo Logi gi g x hhas
designed, gned ed de deve developed velope ped and de deli delivered li live ve v re
th the tr trav travel av avel el e ind iindustry's
nd ndus us ustr t y' y s most
s po popular Onboard Retail technology.
With many y of the largest lar arge ge gest st airlines air irli li line ne nes s in the tthe
the
world wor o ld as customers, GuestLogix helps travel operators
de ddeliver live ve ver r mo more
re tha t tthan
h n ju just
st s secure payment solutions.
We help lp deliver experiences that go bey beyond the cabin and beyond all expectations.
GuestLogix GuestL tLog ogix Inc. Inc GuestLogix Gu G es e t Americas
Brett Proud
EVP New Markets & Products
sales@guestlogix.com
+1.416.642.0349
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Patrick O’Neill
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GuestLogix Europe
Richard Cushing
SVP & General Manager
rcushing@guestlogix.com
+44.1344.206.902
GuestLogix Asia Pacific
Tony Si t
SVP & General Manager
tsit@guestlogix.com
+852.9251.1084

96
INFLIGHT SERVICES
infl ight food/beverage service. A cashless
cabin also means that passengers no
longer need to remember to carry money
onboard the aircraft.
Th e downside of the cashless cabin,
however, is the potential for credit card
fraud. To put this issue into perspective
the CyberSource Airline Online Fraud
Report, developed in association with
Airline Information, shows that in 2010,
airlines worldwide lost an estimated
USD 1.4 billion in revenue due to online
fraud perpetrated on their websites,
which represented 0.9 per cent of total
worldwide online airline ticket sales.
On a positive note the level of fraud
decreased by 31 per cent from 2009 when
airlines lost an estimated USD 1.7 billion
or 1.3 per cent of total online airline ticket
sales worldwide.
A CASE OF FRAUD
For the past fi ve years, the United
States has been ranked as the numberone
country for credit card fraud. In
comparison, credit card fraud has fallen
to its lowest level for 11 years in the United
Kingdom, largely due to the use of Chip
and PIN security.
EMV is an open-standard set of
specifi cations for smart-card payments
and payment-acceptance devices that led
FEBRUARY 2012
to the fi rst introduction of Chip and PIN in
Europe during the year 2000. It stands for
Europay, MasterCard and Visa, a global
standard for interoperation of integrated
circuit cards (IC cards or “chip cards”)
and IC card-capable point of sale (POS)
terminals and automated teller machines
(ATMs). EMV is used for authenticating
credit and debit card transactions.
American Express and JCB (formerly
Japan Credit Bureau) are also part of EMV.
Debit card fraud has been dramatically
reduced across Europe since EMV became
the norm. In Malaysia, which converted to
100 per cent EMV cards at the end of 2005,
credit card fraud has dropped by 95 per
“Ignore the opportunity provided by
à la carte fees, ancillary revenue and
unbundled products at your own peril”
JAY SORENSEN
PRESIDENT, IDEAWORKS
cent. Due to the additional user interfaces
(keypad and card slot) and tamper-proof
enclosure required for Chip and PIN and
the corresponding space and development
costs, IFE systems currently do not have
embedded Chip and PIN functionality. If
an airline elects to use Chip and PIN for its
infl ight retail then it will typically utilise
an EMV approved POS device.
Due to the level of credit card fraud
in the United States, principally linked
to the continued use of magnetic stripe
authentication of credit cards, Visa Inc.
has announced a major new migration
plan to encourage US merchants to
support EMV technology, including
CHECKED BAGGAGE HAS BECOME
A MILLION-DOLLAR BUSINESS
Per passenger annual revenue
estimates by IdeaWorks
$0.51
$0.80
$0.84
$4.54
$7.98
$8.25
$8.26
BRITISH AIRWAYS
{ 23kg
free allowance,
Europe
JETBLUE
{
fee for
2nd bag,
1st bag free
AIR BERLIN
{ 20kg
free allowance
AMERICAN
{ system wide
EASYJET
{ 70%
passengers
check bags
RYANAIR
{ €20 average.
1/3 passengers
pay
ALLEGIANT
Based upon 2009 fi nancial and traffi c disclosures by carriers, IdeaWorks
{
{
{
{
{
{

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98
INFLIGHT SERVICES
incentives for accepting contactless
cards and phone payments via
near fi eld communication (NFC). A
short-range wireless connectivity
technology standard designed
for intuitive, simple, and safe
communication between electronic
devices, NFC can be used for a
variety of purposes including
payment transactions.
A far stronger incentive that Visa is
“off ering” merchants to move to Chip
and PIN begins in October 2015 with
a liability shift that would saddle
merchants with losses for fraudulent
transactions that could have been
prevented if the merchants had
installed Chip and PIN terminals.
Chip and PIN technology is
evolving through the work of
EMV such that not only will Chip
technology accelerate mobile
innovations; it is also expected to
secure payments into the future
through the use of dynamic
authentication which greatly reduces
a criminal’s ability to use stolen
payment card data by introducing
dynamic values for each transaction.
MOBILE DEVELOPMENTS
A smart phone with an NFC chip
can be easily confi gured to work as
a credit or debit card. Th e consumer
then just taps his or her phone
against an NFC-enabled payment
terminal to pay for goods or services.
Mobile payment transactions
already total USD 240 billion
annually, but that’s just the tip of the
FEBRUARY 2012
iceberg. Juniper Research, which
specialises in the identifi cation and
appraisal of opportunities across
the mobile telecoms, content and
application sectors, says the market
is likely to grow by a factor of three
in the next fi ve years and that by
2014 NFC transactions will approach
USD 50 billion from almost USD 300
million NFC-capable cell phones. By
2015 the value of all mobile money
transactions is expected to reach
USD 670 billion.
EMV is actively defi ning the
architecture, specifi cations,
requirements and type approval
processes for supporting EMV mobile
contactless payments utilising
NFC technology, an eff ort which is
critical in supporting the launch of
NFC mobile contactless payment in
Europe, which uses an EMV-based
payments infrastructure.
Realising the full scope of
potential that NFC off ers, Google has
developed Google Wallet, a mobile
application that will enable a mobile
phone to work like a wallet. Google
Wallet stores virtual versions of
one’s existing plastic credit cards on
the phone, along with coupons, and
eventually, loyalty and gift cards.
Google Wallet is currently only
available to Sprint Nexus S 4G phone
owners in the United States.
Yet, as technology progresses and
payments become simpler, it’s clear
that opportunities for airlines to
further grow their ancillary revenue
will emerge.
AirAsia X
Qantas Group
United-Continental
Jet2.com
Allegiant
Spirit
Aer Lingus
Alaska Airlines
Delta
Flybe
JetBlue
Emirates
easyJet
American
Tiger Airways
Ryanair
US Airways
Sun Country
TAM Airlines
Norwegian
AirAsia Group
Vueling
Jazeera Airways
Virgin America
AirTran
Hawaiian
Pegasus
South African
Hainan
WestJet
Southwest
China Eastern
Cebu Pacific
Frontier
Lufthansa Group
Royal Jordanian
Air Astana
LAN Airlines
Air Arabia
REX Regional Express
Air Berlin
Singapore
Iberia
Jet Airways
Comair South Africa
Finnair
SAS Group
ANCILLARY REVENUE
PER PASSENGER, 2010
Source: Yearbook
of Ancillary
Revenue Results,
by IdeaWorks
Company
$41.60 / €29.45
$37.00 / €26.24
$34.32 / €24.23
$34.24 / €24.20
$32.86 / €23.20
$25.16 / €17.76
$24.91 / €17.67
$23.68 / €16.72
$22.75 / €16.06
$20.99 / €14.84
$19.58 / €13.83
$19.22 / €13.57
$18.98 / €13.42
$18.58 / €13.12
$16.99 / €11.99
$15.37 / €10.90
$14.86 / €10.49
$14.82 / €10.47
$14.73 / €10.40
$14.39 / €10.16
$13.65 / €9.63
$11.99 / €8.46
$10.62 / €7.50
$9.67 / €6.83
$8.45 / €5.97
$8.14 / €5.75
$7.83 / €5.53
$7.77 / €5.48
$7.04 / €4.97
$6.17 / €4.35
$5.56 / €3.92
$4.60 / €3.24
$4.15 / €2.93
$4.05 / €2.86
$4.01 / €2.83
$3.53 / €2.49
$2.48 / €1.75
$2.32 / €1.64
$1.90 / €1.34
$1.65 / €1.16
$1.61 / €1.14
$1.25 / €0.89
$0.99 / €0.70
$0.66 / €0.47
$0.37 / €0.26
$0.32 / €0.22
$0.19 / €0.13

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iPhone and iPad are registered trademarks of Apple Computer Inc. Blackberry is a registered trademark of Research in Motion Limited
In cooperation with

YOU'RE IN THE PILOT’S SEAT.
Take control of the passenger experience.
Visit www.PassengerChoiceAwards.com
You Choose Who’s in First. Vote Now!
TM

2011–2012 APEX BOARD OF DIRECTORS
DIRECTOR
NEIL JAMES
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR,
CORPORATE SALES &
PRODUCT
MANAGEMENT
Panasonic Avionics
Corporation
DIRECTOR
ALFY VERETTO
MEMBERSHIP
CO-CHAIR
MANAGER, IFE
CONTENT/
PARTNERSHIPS
Virgin America
VICE TREASURER
TREAS REAS REASURER IMMEDIATE PA PAST
DIRECTOR
PRESIDENT
LINDA CELESTINO
MAR/COMM CHAIR
GENERAL MANAGER
– INFLIGHT SERVICES,
COMMERCIAL DEPT.
Oman Air
DIRECTOR
LUAY QUNASH
MEMBERSHIP
CO-CHAIR
DIRECTOR,
INFLIGHT
Royal Jordanian
Airlines
PRESIDENT
CHRIS BABB
SENIOR PRODUCT
MANAGER,
CUSTOMER
EXPERIENCE
Delta Air Lines
LINDA PALMER
AWARDS CHAIR
SENIOR VICE
PRESIDENT
Walt Disney Studios
Motion Pictures
Non-Theatrical
SECRETARY
DOMINIC GREEN
EVENTS &
EXPO CHAIR
SENIOR
DIRECTOR,
CLIENT
SERVICES
Spafax
PRESIDENT
PATRICK BRANNELLY
VICE PRESIDENT, CORPORATE
COMMUNICATIONS
PRODUCT, PUBLISHING,
DIGITAL & EVENTS
Emirates
DIRECTOR
KEVIN BREMER
EDUCATION CHAIR
MANAGER, CABIN
SYSTEMS TECHNICAL
CENTER
Boeing Commercial
Airplanes
DIRECTOR
LEIGH MANTLE
TV MARKET TASK FORCE
CHAIR
TECHNICAL
DIRECTOR
Infl ight Productions
Ltd., UK
FOR MORE NEWS, VIEWS AND A PLATFORM TO SPEAK YOUR MIND, GO TO THE APEX EDITOR’S BLOG AT BLOG.APEX.AERO
CREATE
DELIVER
MANAGE
DIRECTOR
IAN WALBERG
TECHNOLOGY
CHAIR
CEO
Airborne
Interactive Ltd.
APEX
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
101

102
NEWS IFEC
FEBRUARY 2012
HAVING YOUR HD CAKE
AND EATING IT
NEW HD SPEC INTRODUCES VBR TO HELP MINIMISE FILE SIZE
IT WAS the age-old confl ict between quantity and quality
when the APEX Technology Committee’s High Defi nition
Working Group (HDWG) met on 7 November to fi nalise
the parameter set for APEX’s new HD spec – and quantity
had the edge.
But this time, the means for increasing the potential
volume of content that can be stored on IFE servers came
from a surprising source – variable bit rates. Since IFE’s
fi rst digital specifi cation for content delivery, beginning in
WAEA 0395, the bit rate – or data rate – at which content
plays back has been codifi ed as the “Constant Bit Rate”,
or CBR. This means that – regardless of the amount of
data in the scene – the content plays back at a fi xed bit
rate, such as 1.5Mbps (the default bit rate for MPEG-4 in
APEX 0403).
The reason for codifying CBR was that when content
is delivered from a fi leserver to an uncertain number of
clients (ie, screens), the potential for peak bit rates to
occur simultaneously was present, and such a spike could
result in loss of quality. By maintaining a constant bit rate,
the peaks were predictable and within the capacity of the
IFE system.
But today’s IFE systems have greater capability to
manage such peaks, making Variable Bit Rates (VBR)
possible. Generally, advocates of VBR are looking for
better picture quality. If a movie is played back with
the capability of going as high as eight Mbps in scenes
with more data in motion, such scenes will have greater
playback quality than if they were played back at a CBR
of four Mbps.
WORDS BY MICHAEL CHILDERS
WHAT IS A TC MEETING?
HAVE QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ABOUT APEX? TELL US WHAT YOU THINK AT INFO@APEX.AERO
TECHNICAL
COMMITTEE
But while the HDWG discussions heard from advocates
of VBR whose motivation was quality, it was a rather
different argument that made the difference. Both The
IMS Company and Technicolor had run a range of test
fi les using a VBR with a fi xed ceiling, versus a CBR. Both
results strongly suggested that, while there was some
increase in picture quality, the greatest benefi t of VBR
versus CBR was a net saving of approximately 15 per cent
or more in fi le size.
Why? Because while VBR uses a higher bit rate for
scenes with a lot of motion, it uses a lower bit rate for
scenes with less motion.
Airlines and hardware providers anxious to access the
benefi ts of HD also have concerns about the increase
in fi le size required for HD. Hence, a savings of about 15
per cent is quite meaningful. So the APEX HD spec soon
to come out of the HD Working Group will include the
following bit-rate parameters:
• CBR 4.0 Mbps (default) to 8.0 Mbps
• VBR peak from 4.0 Mbps to 8.0 Mbps with
6.0 Mbps default
• When visual quality requires, the default value may be
varied from with the concurrence of the stakeholders,
who may include the compressionist, the content
provider, the system provider and the airline
And that is called having your HD cake and eating
it! The HD Working Group chairs (Pierre Schuberth of
Thales, Bryan Rusenko and Kurt Clawson of Technicolor)
are currently writing the parameter set agreed at the last
meeting into a draft spec.
APEX Technology Committee (TC) meetings feature presentations by leading technical experts in
the IFE and communications industry. The presenters and attendees evaluate new technologies
related to the passenger experience industry, current technical features and emerging trends. TC
meetings are held in Southern California and typically have approximately 175 attendees. As a
membership benefi t, TC meetings are free to APEX members. The next TC meeting will be held in
May 2012. Past and future agendas and presentations can be found on apex.aero.
CONTACT: BONNIE SONNENSCHEIN - BSONNENSCHEIN@KELLENCOMPANY.COM / +1 212 297 2118

104
NEWS APEX
APEX TV MARKET CONFERENCE –
MEET US IN BRIGHTON!
The Airline Passenger Experience Association (APEX) TV Market
Conference is the only global industry event focused specifi cally on
bringing together IFE TV buyers with leading worldwide distributors of
short-subject and TV movie programming. Fifty distributors will show
off their content within pre-set appointments with TV purchasers. Many
airlines and content service providers use this event as the central focus
for their annual TV product planning.
The 2012 TV Market Conference is heading back to Brighton, England
with a new agenda format highlighted below. Appointments and
education sessions will take place over the three-day conference.
A complete agenda can be found at www.apex.aero.
This year, the exhibits will be located in the historic Brighton Dome. The
Dome provides a unique and versatile venue and is part of the glorious
Royal Pavilion Estate. Rooms at several local hotels (of various prices)
will be reserved for TVMC attendees. All hotels will be within walking
distance of the Dome.
Education at the TV Market Conference features top industry experts
imparting their views on the most pressing topics impacting those in
the international TV industry. Sessions address current and future
trends in TV distribution, new and updated schedules and sources of TV
programming from around the world.
Take advantage of this great opportunity to meet with the top airlines
and content service providers from around the world!
2012 EVENTS CALENDAR
JANUARY 12
MARCH 26
FEBRUARY 2012
APRIL 16-18
MID MAY
JUNE 12-14
SEPTEMBER 17-20
EARLY NOVEMBER
2012 TV MARKET CONFERENCE SCHEDULE OF EVENTS*
MONDAY 16 APRIL 2012
All day Scheduled Distributor & CSP/Airline Appointments
Evening Open
TUESDAY 17 APRIL 2012
Morning/early afternoon Scheduled Distributor & CSP/Airline Appointments
Late afternoon Education Sessions (exhibits close for the day)
Evening Famous TV Quiz and Off-Site Networking Event
WEDNESDAY 18 APRIL 2012
Morning Education Sessions
Afternoon Scheduled Distributor & CSP/Airline Appointments
*subject to change
FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT US AT
APEX.AERO
Consumer Electronics Show Education Session
Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.A.
Education Workshop
Hamburg, Germany
TV Market Conference
Brighton Dome, Brighton, England
Technology Committee Meeting
TBD location in Southern California, U.S.A.
APEX/APOT/IFSA Event
Hyatt Regency, Incheon, South Korea
APEX 2012 EXPO
Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach, California, U.S.
Education Event
TBD location in South America
FOR MORE NEWS, VIEWS AND A PLATFORM TO SPEAK YOUR MIND, GO TO THE APEX EDITOR’S BLOG AT BLOG.APEX.AERO

106
What to look for in the months ahead
COMING ATTRACTIONS
21 JUMP STREET
DIRECTORS: PHIL LORD AND CHRISTOPHER MILLER
STARRING: JONAH HILL, CHANNING TATUM, BRIE LARSON,
DAVE FRANCO, ROB RIGGLE AND ICE CUBE
In this action-comedy, Schmidt (Hill) and Jenko (Tatum)
use their youthful appearances to go undercover in
a local high school. As they trade in their guns and
badges for backpacks, Schmidt and Jenko risk their
lives to investigate a dangerous drug ring. But they
fi nd that high school is nothing like they left it just a
few years earlier – and neither expects that they will
have to confront the terror and anxiety of being a
teenager again and all the issues they thought they
had left behind.
W Sony Pictures Releasing / Rana Matthes
ACT OF VALOR
DIRECTORS: MIKE MCCOY, SCOTT WAUGH
STARRING : ROSELYN SANCHEZ, NESTOR SERRANO, EMILIO
RIVERA, JASON COTTLE, GONZALO MENENDEZ
An unprecedented blend of real-life heroism and
original fi lmmaking, Act of Valor follows a Navy Seal
squad on a covert mission to recover a kidnapped
CIA agent, and in the process takes down a complex
web of terrorist cells determined to strike America at
all costs. The fi lmmakers had unprecedented Naval
access resulting in high-octane combat sequences
and never-before-seen military operation scenes
which are composited from actual events in the lives
of the men appearing in the fi lm and their comrades.
N (USA only) Paramount / Mark Horton
FEBRUARY 2012
A GHOST OF A CHANCE
DIRECTOR: KOKI MITANI
STARRING: ERI FUKATSU, TOSHIYUKI NISHIDA, HIROSHI ABE
Emi (Fukatsu), a third-rate criminal lawyer with few
career prospects, is assigned a particularly bizarre
case: to defend Goro Yabe, who is suspected of
murdering his wealthy wife, Fuko Hino (Yuko Takeuchi).
However, Emi’s client has an unbelievable alibi about
being in a country inn where he suffered an attack of
kanashibari, or supernatural sleep paralysis. The only
person who can vouch for him is the ghost of a
dishonored samurai, Rokubei Sarashina (Nishida), who
Goro claims visited him that evening.
W (except Japan) Emphasis Video Entertainment
Ltd / Grace Lau
IMAGE “A GHOST OF A CHANCE”. ©2011FUJI TELEVISION NETWORK, TOHO
A THOUSAND WORDS
DIRECTOR: BRIAN ROBBINS
STARRING: EDDIE MURPHY, CLIFF CURTIS, ALLISON JANNEY,
KERRY WASHINGTON
Fast-talking literary agent Jack McCall (Murphy) has
set his sights on New Age guru Dr. Sinja for his own
selfi sh purposes. But Dr. Sinja is onto him, and Jack’s
life comes unglued after a magical Bodhi tree
mysteriously appears in his backyard. With every word
Jack speaks, a leaf falls from the tree and he realises
that when the last leaf falls, both he and the tree are
toast. Words have never failed Jack McCall, but now
he’s got to stop talking and conjure up some
outrageous ways to communicate or he’s a goner.
W Paramount / Mark Horton

AGES OF LOVE (L’AMOUR A SES RAISONS)
DIRECTOR: GIOVANNI VERONESI
STARRING: ROBERT DE NIRO, MONICA BELLUCI
This three-part fi lm explores the ages of love. Youth tells the story of Roberto, a young, ambitious lawyer about to
wed, and his overwhelming encounter with the beautiful, provocative and mysterious Micol. In Maturity, successful
TV anchorman Fabio, a faithful husband for 25 years, is swept away by an unexpected and fateful meeting. The
intriguing Eliana is not, however, who she claims to be. In Beyond, an American professor of art history living in
Rome meets a friend’s stunning daughter and begins to experience sensations that have been dulled for too long.
I (Middle East territories only) SKEYE / Isabelle Bégin
ALWAYS
DIRECTOR: SONG IL-GON
STARRING: SO JI-SU, HAN HYO-JOO
Chul-min (So Ji-su) lives an ordinary life, though one
that conceals a dark past. His days of violence behind
him, he now works two jobs: delivering water by day
and managing a parking lot by night. And the parking
lot is where he encounters Jung-hwa (Han Hyo-joo), a
bubbly young woman who is visually challenged. They
become friends and Jung-hwa encourages Chul-min
to lead a better life. But their relationship falters when
Chul-min learns that unless Jung-hwa has surgery, her
blindness could become permanent.
W (except Korea and Japan) Emphasis Video
Entertainment Ltd / Grace Lau
INFLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT | UPCOMING AIRLINE MOVIE RELEASES
DISTRIBUTION RIGHTS CODES: N = NORTH AMERICA I = OUTSIDE NORTH AMERICA W = WORLDWIDE RELEASE
THE ARTIST
DIRECTOR: MICHEL HAZANAVICIUS
STARRING: JEAN DUJARDIN, BÉRÉNICE BEJO, JAMES
CROMWELL, JOHN GOODMAN
A black-and-white silent picture made by modern
French fi lmmakers in Hollywood, The Artist is a spirited,
hilarious and moving delight. A sensation in Cannes,
this playful love letter to the movies’ early days spins
on a variation of A Star Is Born-like relationship
between a dashing, Douglas Fairbanks-style star
whose career wanes with the coming of sound and a
dazzling young actress whose star is on the rise.
W (except Canada, Israel, Taiwan, Singapore,
South Korea, France, Hong Kong) Terry Steiner
International / Nadja K. Rutkowski
IMAGES © LA PETITE REINE / STUDIO 37 / LA CLASSE AMÉRICAINE / JD PROD FRANCE 3 CINÉMA / JOUROR PRODUCTIONS / UFILM
THE ALLURE OF TEARS
DIRECTOR: BARBARA WONG
STARRING: GIGI LEUNG, RICHIE JEN, AARIF LEE, JOE CHEN,
SHAWN DOU, ZHOU DONG-YU
This three-part, old-fashioned weepie tells three
distinguished stories about anguish in life and
relationships. In one, two dying patients meet and
discover that they still have the spirit to help others;
each helps the other complete a bucket list. In the
second, an ambitious music teacher, a deaf violinist
and their old orchestra are determined to raise
money after most of their sponsors drop out. In the
third, a bride is killed during a robbery a week before
the wedding. The groom, though stricken with grief,
decides to carry out the wedding as planned.
W (except China) Encore Infl ight Limited /
Edwin Cheung
THE AVENGERS
DIRECTOR: JOSS WHEDON
STARRING: ROBERT DOWNEY JR., CHRIS EVANS, MARK
RUFFALO, CHRIS HEMSWORTH, SCARLETT JOHANSSON,
JEREMY RENNER, TOM HIDDLESTON, STELLAN SKARSGÅRD,
SAMUEL L. JACKSON
When an unexpected enemy threatens global security,
Nick Fury, director of the international peacekeeping
agency known as SHIELD, fi nds himself in need of
a team to pull the world back from the brink. The
Avengers Initiative is born. Iron Man, The Hulk, Thor,
Captain America, Natasha Romanov (Black Widow)
and Hawkeye assemble to meet the challenge.
W Walt Disney Studios Non-Theatrical, Inc. / Linda
Palmer / Ruth Walker
IMAGES © 2011 FUJI TELEVISION NETWORK, TOHO
IMAGE © DISNEY ENTERPRISES/
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
107

108
INFLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT | UPCOMING AIRLINE MOVIE RELEASES
DISTRIBUTION RIGHTS CODES: N = NORTH AMERICA I = OUTSIDE NORTH AMERICA W = WORLDWIDE RELEASE
BENEATH THE DARKNESS
DIRECTOR: MARTIN GUIGUI
STARRING: DENNIS QUAID, TONY OLLER, AIMEE TEEGARDEN
A teen thriller in which high-school kids are pitted against a psychotic villain in a community where adults refuse to
see one of their own as a killer. The villain is a well-respected mortician in a town where he was once a legendary
high-school football star. But among the kids, he is legendary for a more sinister reason – they hear rumours that
his house is haunted. The truth is even more evil and dangerous – he murdered his wife and her lover when he
caught them having an affair, and now has secretly set up his wife’s embalmed corpse in his house.
W Terry Steiner International / Nadja K. Rutkowski
BIG MIRACLE
DIRECTOR: KEN KWAPIS
STARRING: DREW BARRYMORE, JOHN KRASINSKI
Inspired by the true story that captured the hearts of
people across the world, the rescue adventure Big
Miracle tells the amazing tale of a small-town news
reporter (John Krasinski) and a Greenpeace volunteer
(Drew Barrymore) who are joined by rival world
superpowers to save a family of majestic grey whales
trapped by rapidly forming ice in the Arctic Circle.
As the world’s attention turns to the top of the globe,
saving these endangered animals becomes a shared
cause for nations entrenched against one another and
leads to a momentary thaw in the Cold War.
W Universal / Phyllis Bagdadi
FEBRUARY 2012
IMAGE © 2012 UNIVERSAL STUDIOS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
BRAVE
DIRECTORS: MARK ANDREWS, BRENDA CHAPMAN
STARRING: WITH THE VOICES OF KELLY MACDONALD,
EMMA THOMPSON, KEVIN MCKIDD, ROBBIE COLTRANE,
CRAIG FERGUSON
Set in Scotland in a rugged and mythical time, Brave
chronicles the story of Scottish princess Merida, a
courageous, aspiring archer with an impetuous nature.
Determined to carve her own path in life, Merida makes
a reckless choice that unleashes unintended peril and
inadvertently jeopardises her father’s kingdom, forcing
her to discover the meaning of true bravery in order to
undo an ill-fated curse before it’s too late.
W Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Non-
Theatrical, Inc. / Linda Palmer / Ruth Walker
IMAGE © 2011 BTDARK, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
IMAGE © DISNEY/PIXAR. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
THE BEST EXOTIC
MARIGOLD HOTEL
DIRECTOR: JOHN MADDEN
STARRING: JUDI DENCH, BILL NIGHY, TOM WILKINSON,
MAGGIE SMITH, PENELOPE WILTON, RONALD PICKUP, DEV
PATEL, CELIA IMRIE
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel follows a group
of British retirees who decide to “outsource” their
retirement to less expensive and seemingly exotic
India. Enticed by advertisements for the newly restored
Marigold Hotel and bolstered with visions of a life
of leisure, they arrive to fi nd the palace a shell of
its former self. Though the new environment is less
luxurious than imagined, they are forever transformed
by their shared experiences, discovering that life and
love can begin again when you let go of the past.
W 20th Century Fox / Julian Levin
CHRONICLE
DIRECTOR: JOSH TRANK
STARRING: ALEX RUSSELL, MICHAEL B. JORDAN, DANE
DEHAAN, ASHLEY HINSHAW, MICHAEL KELLY, ANNA WOOD,
JOE VAZ, LUKE TYLER, MATTHEW DYLAN ROBERTS
In this new century, we record, post and comment on
every second of our lives, sharing our every emotion
and opinion with the world, no matter how mundane.
Most of the time it’s pretty harmless stuff. But for three
high-school friends who stumble upon a life-changing
discovery, the chronicle of their ordinary lives is about
to take an extraordinary turn, and the bonds of their
friendship is tested when they are forced to explore
their darker sides.
W 20th Century Fox / Julian Levin
IMAGE © 2012 TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX FILM CORPORATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
IMAGE © 2012 TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX FILM CORPORATION AND DUNE ENTERTAINMENT III LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

110
INFLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT | UPCOMING AIRLINE MOVIE RELEASES
DISTRIBUTION RIGHTS CODES: N = NORTH AMERICA I = OUTSIDE NORTH AMERICA W = WORLDWIDE RELEASE
CORIOLANUS
DIRECTOR: RALPH FIENNES
STARRING: RALPH FIENNES, GERARD BUTLER, VANESSA REDGRAVE, BRIAN COX, JAMES NESBITT, JESSICA CHASTAIN
Coriolanus (Fiennes), a revered and feared general, is at odds with Rome. Pushed by his controlling and ambitious
mother, Volumnia (Redgrave), to seek the exalted and powerful position of Consul, he is loath to ingratiate himself
with the masses, whose votes he needs in order to secure the offi ce. When the public refuses to support him,
Coriolanus’s anger prompts a riot that culminates in his expulsion from Rome. The banished hero then allies
himself with his sworn enemy Tullus Aufi dius (Butler) to take his revenge on the city.
I (except UK, Australia, New Zealand) Jaguar Distribution / Peter George
EXTREMELY LOUD AND
INCREDIBLY CLOSE
DIRECTOR: STEPHEN DALDRY
STARRING: SANDRA BULLOCK, TOM HANKS, THOMAS HORN,
JAMES GANDOLFINI, ZOE CALDWELL, MAX VON SYDOW,
VIOLA DAVIS, JEFFREY WRIGHT, JOHN GOODMAN
Oskar is convinced that his father, who died in the
9/11 attacks, has left a fi nal message for him hidden
somewhere in the city. Feeling disconnected from his
grieving mother and driven by a relentlessly active
mind, Oskar searches New York City for the lock that
fi ts a mysterious key he found in his father’s closet. His
journey takes him beyond his own loss to a greater
understanding of the observable world around him.
W Warner Bros. / Jeff Crawford
FEBRUARY 2012
FATHER OF INVENTION
DIRECTOR: TRENT COOPER
STARRING: KEVIN SPACEY, CAMILLA BELLE,
HEATHER GRAHAM
Millionaire infomercial guru Robert Axle (two-time
Academy Award-Winner Kevin Spacey) loses
everything when one of his inventions has a design
fl aw that chops off the fi ngers of thousands of
customers. After serving eight years in prison, Axle
is ready to redeem his name and rebuild his empire
with a new innovation. But upon returning home, he
struggles to win over his estranged family and soon
realises that, before he can be successful with his new
creation, fi rst he must reinvent himself.
W Entertainment in Motion / Bill Grant
IMAGE © ICON ENTERTAINMENT INTERNATIONAL, 2011 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
DIRTY GIRL
DIRECTOR: ABE SYLVIA
STARRING: JUNO TEMPLE, JEREMY DOZIER, MILLA JOVOVICH,
MARY STEENBURGEN, WILLIAM H. MACY, TIM MCGRAW
Dirty Girl is the story of Danielle (Temple), the dirty
girl of Norman High School in Norman, Oklahoma,
circa 1987. When Danielle’s misbehaviour gets her
banished to a remedial class, she is paired on a
parenting project with Clarke (Dozier), an innocent
closet-case with no friends. Danielle is determined
to get to California to fi nd the father she’s never met,
and Clarke is desperate to escape being sent to
military school. Together, the mismatched misfi ts
light out for California, and discover each
other and themselves through a funny and
serendipitous friendship.
W (except UK) Entertainment in Motion / Bill Grant
GHOST RIDER: SPIRIT OF
VENGEANCE
DIRECTORS: MARK NEVELDINE AND BRIAN TAYLOR
STARRING: NICOLAS CAGE, VIOLANTE PLACIDO, CIARAN
HINDS, JOHNNY WHITWORTH, CHRISTOPHER LAMBERT
AND IDRIS ELBA
Nicolas Cage returns as the devil’s bounty hunter
Johnny Blaze in the sequel to the worldwide hit
Ghost Rider. Johnny is recruited by a sect to save a
boy (Riordan) from the devil (Hinds). At fi rst, Johnny is
reluctant to embrace the power of the Ghost Rider, but
soon realises that it is the only way to protect the boy
– and possibly rid himself of his curse forever.
N (Bahamas, Bermuda, Canada, Puerto Rico,
USA) Sony Pictures Releasing / Rana Matthes

112
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GONE
DIRECTOR: HEITOR DHALIA
STARRING: AMANDA SEYFRIED, WES BENTLEY, JENNIFER CARPENTER, SEBASTIAN STAN
In the new suspense thriller, Gone, Jill Parish (Amanda Seyfried) comes home from a night shift to discover her
sister Molly (Emily Wickersham) has been abducted. Jill, who had escaped from a kidnapper a year before, is
convinced that the same serial killer has come back for her sister. Afraid that Molly will be dead by sundown,
Jill embarks on a heart-pounding chase to fi nd the killer, expose his secrets and save her sister. Filmed on
location in Portland, Oregon.
W (except USA) Jaguar Distribution / Peter George
HUGO
DIRECTOR: MARTIN SCORSESE
STARRING: ASA BUTTERFIELD, CHLOË GRACE MORETZ,
CHRISTOPHER LEE, BEN KINGSLEY, SACHA BARON COHEN,
JUDE LAW
Academy Award-winning director Martin Scorsese
invites you to join him on a thrilling journey to a
magical world set in 1930s Paris. Based on Brian
Selznick’s award-winning New York Times best-seller,
The Invention of Hugo Cabret, the fi lm Hugo recounts
the astonishing adventure of a wily and resourceful
boy whose quest to unlock a secret left to him by his
father will transform Hugo and all those around him,
and reveal a safe and loving place he can call home.
The feel-good movie of the year.
W (except UK) Entertainment in Motion / Bill Grant
FEBRUARY 2012
INSEPARABLE
DIRECTOR: DAYYAN ENG
STARRING: KEVIN SPACEY, DANIEL WU, BEIBI GONG, NI YAN,
PETER STORMARE, KENNETH TSANG
Inseparable takes place in a southern megacity in
China. It tells the plot-twisting story of 29-year-old Li
(Wu), a burnt-out engineer who has recently endured
several tragic events in his life. The movie opens
as Li is about to commit suicide. Fortunately, Chuck
(Spacey), an American expat who claims to be Li’s
neighbour, stops him just in time. The two become
friends and Chuck takes Li under his wing and
gradually helps him sort out the troubles in life. But
who is Chuck really?
W (Asia, Middle East, Australia, NZ, South Africa,
Kenya) Encore Infl ight Limited / Jackie Sayno
IMAGE © LAKESHORE ENTERTAINMENT, 2011 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
HAYWIRE
DIRECTOR: STEVEN SODERBERGH
STARRING: CHANNING TATUM, EWAN MCGREGOR, MICHAEL
DOUGLAS, GINA CARANO, ANTONIO BANDERAS
In this dynamic action-thriller, Mallory Kane (MMA
superstar Gina Carano) is a highly trained operative
who works for a government security contractor in
the dirtiest, most dangerous corners of the world.
After successfully freeing a Chinese journalist held
hostage, she is double-crossed and left for dead by
someone close to her in her own agency. Suddenly
the target of skilled assassins who know her every
move, Mallory must use all her skills, tricks and
abilities to fi nd the truth.
W (except USA, Australia, New Zealand)
Entertainment in Motion / Bill Grant
N (USA only) Paramount / Mark Horton
JOHN CARTER
DIRECTOR: ANDREW STANTON
STARRING: TAYLOR KITSCH, LYNN COLLINS, SAMANTHA
MORTON, MARK STRONG, CIARAN HINDS, DOMINIC WEST,
JAMES PUREFOY, WILLEM DAFOE
Based on the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs, this
stirring adventure details the exploits of former
Confederate Captain John Carter, who has been
transported to Mars. Here, he fi nds himself a prisoner
of 12-foot-tall barbarians. When he manages to escape,
he becomes part of a confl ict between the various
nations of the planet, and encounters a princess who
is in desperate need of a saviour. And John Carter may
be just the man for the job.
W Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Non-
Theatrical, Inc. / Linda Palmer / Ruth Walker
IMAGE © WALT DISNEY PICTURES. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

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114
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JOURNEY 2: THE MYSTERIOUS ISLAND
DIRECTOR: BRAD PEYTON
STARRING: DWAYNE JOHNSON, MICHAEL CAINE, JOSH HUTCHERSON, VANESSA HUDGENS, LUIS GUZMAN, KRISTIN DAVIS
In this follow-up to the 2008 worldwide hit Journey to the Center of the Earth, this 3D family adventure begins
when young Sean Anderson (Hutcherson, reprising his role from the fi rst fi lm) receives a distress signal from a
mysterious island where no island should exist. Together with his stepfather, Hank (Johnson), a helicopter pilot
(Guzman) and the pilot’s beautiful, strong-willed daughter (Hudgens), they set out to fi nd the island, rescue its lone
inhabitant and escape before seismic shockwaves force the island under the sea.
W Warner Bros. / Jeff Crawford
KLITSCHKO
DIRECTOR: SEBASTIAN DEHNHARDT
STARRING: VITALI KLITSCHKO, WLADIMIR KLITSCHKO,
LAMON BREWSTER, CHRIS BYRD, BERND BONTE
In 1996, Ukrainian brothers Vitali and Wladimir
Klitschko moved to Germany to begin careers in
heavyweight boxing, and the sport has never been the
same since. After a 15-year reign over the ring, they
made history in 2008 by becoming the fi rst brothers in
the sport to hold world titles at the same time. Through
an engaging mix of candid interviews and absorbing
fi ght footage, Klitschko offers a captivating glimpse into
the makings of these intelligent champions.
W (except Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Croatia)
Terry Steiner International / Nadja K. Rutkowski
FEBRUARY 2012
IMAGE © BROADVIEW PICTURES 2011
LATE BLOOMERS
DIRECTOR: JULIE GAVRAS
STARRING: WILLIAM HURT, ISABELLA ROSSELLINI
Like many 60-year-old couples of the 21st century,
Mary and Adam do it with style until one day they
realise they’ve entered the senior category. Adam’s
reaction is as frantic as his denial while Mary decides
to deal with the situation by taking care of her family.
But her preparations for aging frighten her friends and
family. A clash becomes inevitable and a separation
ineluctable. Will life be able to reconcile them?
W (except France, French-speaking territories,
French-speaking Africa, Australia, NZ, Germany,
Austria, Japan) Terry Steiner International /
Nadja K. Rutkowski
IMAGE © 2010 GAUMONT - LES FILMS DU WORSO - LATE BLOOMERS LTD
JOYFUL NOISE
DIRECTOR: TODD GRAFF
STARRING: QUEEN LATIFIAH, DOLLY PARTON, JEREMY
JORDAN, KEKE PALMER, DEXTER DARDEN
The small town of Pacashau, Georgia, has fallen on
hard times, but the people are counting on the Divinity
Church Choir to lift their spirits by winning the National
Joyful Noise Competition. The choir’s newly appointed
director, Vi Rose Hill (Latifah), stubbornly wants to stick
with their tried-and-true traditional style, while the fi ery
G.G. Sparrow (Parton) thinks tried and true translates
to tired and old. Shaking things up even more is
G.G.’s rebellious grandson, Randy (Jordan), who has
an ear for music and an eye for Vi Rose’s beautiful
and talented daughter, Olivia (Palmer). A funny and
inspirational story of music, hope, love and renewal.
W Warner Bros. / Jeff Crawford
LEILA (TOI, MOI, ET
LES AUTRES)
DIRECTOR: AUDREY ESTRUGO
STARRING: LEILA BEKHTI, BENJAMIN SIKSOU, CECILE CASSEL
Gab, a young slacker from a wealthy Parisian family,
has his comfortable life all planned out. Beautiful
French Arab law student Leila, on the other hand,
has a lot on her plate: she has studies to juggle, a
troublesome younger brother to look out for and
a mother conspicuous by her absence. She is also
deeply engaged in the struggle of illegal immigrants.
When Gab falls for Leila, they must battle social
forces that will do everything to keep them apart.
I (Middle East territories only) SKEYE /
Isabelle Bégin

© 2012 Warner Bros. Pictures. All rights reserved.
Warner Bros. Television
Jeff Crawford • jeff.crawford@warnerbros.com
Angelica McCoy • angelica.mccoy@warnerbros.com
wbnts.warnerbros.com

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For more details visit:
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MAN ON A LEDGE
DIRECTOR: ASGER LETH
STARRING: SAM WORTHINGTON, ELIZABETH BANKS, JAMIE BELL, ED HARRIS
Nick Cassidy (Worthington), an ex-cop turned con, feigns an attempt to commit suicide by jumping off a
Manhattan hotel rooftop, while his brother carries out a massive diamond heist to prove that he was set up. As
police negotiator Lydia Anderson (Banks) is dispatched to bargain with Nick, she is unaware that she is part of
his grand plan to prove his innocence. With SWAT about to move, and nowhere to go but down, Nick’s chances
of survival are getting slimmer by the minute.
I Entertainment in Motion / Bill Grant
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE
GHOST PROTOCOL
DIRECTOR: BRAD BAIRD
STARRING: TOM CRUISE, JEREMY RENNER, SIMON PEGG,
PAULA PATTON, VING RHAMES, JOSH HOLLOWAY,
TOM WILKINSON
Tom Cruise returns as IMF operative Ethan Hunt who
is disavowed along with the rest of the agency when
the President initiates a “Ghost Protocol”. Left without
any resources or backup, Ethan must fi nd a way to
clear his agency’s name and prevent another attack.
To complicate matters further, Ethan must embark on
this mission with a team of fellow IMF fugitives whose
motives he does not fully know.
W Paramount / Mark Horton
OF GODS AND MEN (DES
DIEUX ET DES HOMMES)
DIRECTOR: XAVIER BEAUVOIS
SATRRING: LAMBERT WILSON, MICHAEL LONSDALE
High in the mountains of the Maghreb during the ’90s,
eight French Cistercian monks live in harmony with
their Muslim brothers. But terror is slowly taking hold
of the region. The monks try to continue as before, but
the atmosphere grows tenser by the day. When they
agree to treat some of the terrorists, the authorities are
furious, and put pressure on them to return to France.
Christian the Prior calls a vote. The brothers are united.
They will stay, whatever the cost.
I (Middle East territories only) SKEYE /
Isabelle Bégin
INFLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT | UPCOMING AIRLINE MOVIE RELEASES
DISTRIBUTION RIGHTS CODES: N = NORTH AMERICA I = OUTSIDE NORTH AMERICA W = WORLDWIDE RELEASE
MAYDAY 3DNA
DIRECTOR: WEN YEN KUNG
STARRING: MAYDAY, RENE LIU, RICHIE REN, SUET LAM
Billed as a “concept fi lm” MAYDAY 3DNA
interweaves three fi ctional stories with footage from
the Taiwanese alternative rock group DNA’s 2010
concert tour (dubbed the DNA Tour) through Taiwan,
Hong Kong, Singapore and China. The fi ctional
sequences include a vignette about a Guangzhou
father and daughter; another about a Taiwan taxi
driver and passenger; and a third about a Shanghai
delivery boy. All the fi ctional characters are affected
by the lure of a Mayday gathering and the three
separate stories intersect at one particular Mayday
concert in Shanghai.
I (whole of Asia) Cai Chang International Inc. /
Nancy Liu
ONE FOR THE MONEY
DIRECTOR: JULIE ANNE ROBINSON
STARRING: KATHERINE HEIGL, JOHN LEGUIZAMO, DEBBIE
REYNOLDS, JASON O’MARA, DANIEL SUNJATA
Recently divorced and desperate for a job, 30-year-old
Stephanie Plum (Heigl) goes to work at her cousin’s
bail bond business. On the plus side, Stephanie
discovers she has a skill for ferreting out the truth; on
the minus side, her fi rst case is that of a cop who broke
her heart in high school and now stands accused of
murder. Stephanie is swept up in a suspenseful world
of murder, deceit and a bit of romance. Based on the
best-selling book by Janet Evanovich.
I (except Australia, NZ) Jaguar Distribution /
Peter George
IMAGE © LAKESHORE ENTERTAINMENT, 2011 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
117

THE PIRATES! BAND OF MISFITS
DIRECTOR: PETER LORD
STARRING: HUGH GRANT, DAVID TENNANT, IMELDA STAUNTON, MARTIN FREEMAN, JEREMY PIVEN, SALMA HAYEK, ASHLEY
JENSEN, BRENDAN GLEESON
Hugh Grant stars in his fi rst animated role as the luxuriantly bearded Pirate Captain – a boundlessly enthusiastic,
if somewhat less-than-successful, terror of the high seas. With a ragtag crew at his side, the Captain has one
dream: to beat his rivals Black Bellamy (Piven) and Cutlass Liz (Hayek) to the coveted Pirate Of The Year Award.
Our heroes go on an adventure from the shores of exotic Blood Island to the foggy streets of Victorian London.
W Sony Pictures Releasing / Rana Matthes
POLISS (POLISSE)
DIRECTOR: MAIWENN
STARRING: KARINE VIARD, NICHOLAS DUVAUCHELLE
The daily grind for the cops of the Juvenile Protection
Unit – arresting child molesters, busting underage
pickpockets and chewing over relationship issues
at lunch; interrogating abusive parents, taking
statements from children, confronting the excesses
of teen sexuality, enjoying solidarity with colleagues
and laughing uncontrollably at the most unthinkable
moments. Knowing the worst exists and living with it.
How do these cops balance their private lives and the
realities they confront every working day?
W (except Benelux, North America, UK) SKEYE /
Isabelle Bégin
PROJECT X
DIRECTOR: NIMA NOURIZADEH
STARRING: THOMAS MANN, JONATHAN DANIEL BROWN,
OLIVER COOPER, DAX FLAME, MILES TELLER, KIRBY BLISS
BLANTON, NICOLE O’CONNOR, ALEXIS KNAPP
Project X is an out-of-control comedy that follows
a group of buds who set out to make a name for
themselves by throwing the most epic 17th birthday
party ever. Word spreads quickly and soon dreams
are ruined, records are blemished and legends are
born. The fi lm, shot on digital cameras that the kids
themselves carry around, and produced by the
director of The Hangover, is a warning to parents and
police everywhere.
W Warner Bros. / Jeff Crawford
INFLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT | UPCOMING AIRLINE MOVIE RELEASES
DISTRIBUTION RIGHTS CODES: N = NORTH AMERICA I = OUTSIDE NORTH AMERICA W = WORLDWIDE RELEASE
IMAGES © DISNEY ENTERPRISES
PLAYING THE FIELD
DIRECTOR: GABRIELE MUCCINO
STARRING: GERARD BUTLER, JESSICA BIEL, UMA THURMAN,
CATHERINE ZETA-JONES, DENNIS QUAID, JUDY GREER
Scottish star Gerard Butler (Machine Gun Preacher,
300, How To Train Your Dragon, RocknRolla) plays
George, a retired, world-famous soccer star with a
weak past who tries to rebuild a relationship with his
son and ex-wife by taking on the position of coach for
his kid’s soccer team. But, while soccer is supposed
to be a hands-free sport, his players’ restless and
gorgeous mothers can’t seem to keep their hands
off coach, which imperils George’s plan to reconcile
with his wife and earn back the trust of his son. Will
George be able to resist the relentless temptations?
I (except French-speaking world) Jaguar
Distribution / Peter George
PUNCH
DIRECTOR: LEE HAN
STARRING: KIM YOON-SEOK, YU AINE
Seventeen-year-old high school sophomore Wan-deuk
(Aine) has a miserable existence. His mother long
gone, he’s being raised by his disabled father who
struggles to offer a stable family life. School proves no
better. Uninspired and with poor grades, all Wan-deuk
excels at appears to be fi ghting. Making things even
more depressing is outspoken teacher Dong-Ju (Yoonseok)
who constantly picks on him. But Wan-deuk’s life
takes a dramatic turn when he discovers his mother is
alive and wishes to meet him.
W (except Korea) Emphasis Video Entertainment
Ltd / Grace Lau
IMAGE © MILLENNIUM FILMS, 2011 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
119

120
INFLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT | UPCOMING AIRLINE MOVIE RELEASES
DISTRIBUTION RIGHTS CODES: N = NORTH AMERICA I = OUTSIDE NORTH AMERICA W = WORLDWIDE RELEASE
QUARTET!
DIRECTOR: JUNICHI MIURA
STARRING: MAHIRO TAKASUGI, AYAME GOURIKI, SHIGEKI HOSOKAWA, MAYU TSURUTA
Kai is a middle school student and a promising violinist. Although he wants to concentrate on his music, he is
unable to do so because of his family. Kai’s folks are musical. The parents, who majored in music, had to give up
their hopes of becoming musicians for the family. Kai’s rebellious sister has an inferiority complex and now Kai’s
father is laid off from work. The family feels like they are about to fall apart at any moment. At least, that is, until
Kai hatches an ingenious plan: make the family form a musical quartet!
W (except Japan) Encore Infl ight Limited / Edwin Cheung
ROCKSTAR
DIRECTOR: IMTIAZ ALI
STARRING: RANBIR KAPOOR, NARGIS FAKHRI
Rockstar tells the tale of JJ, a simple Haryanvi boy
who dreams of becoming a rockstar. When an elder
tells JJ that he’ll never produce a great tune unless
he’s experienced heartbreak, JJ sets out to meet Heer,
a beautiful girl described as “the perfect heartbreaking
machine”, so that he can suffer the heartbreak he
thinks is the key to fame. Sure enough, when Heer
heads overseas with her husband, JJ’s pain of separation
translates into words and music that inspire the
heart and soul and JJ becomes a rockstar. But then JJ
realises that love is greater than worldly success.
W Eros International / Prashant Gaonkar
FEBRUARY 2012
SAFE HOUSE
DIRECTOR: DANIEL ESPINOSA
STARRING: DENZEL WASHINGTON, RYAN REYNOLDS
Oscar-winner Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds
star in the action-thriller Safe House. Washington plays
Tobin Frost, a dangerous renegade from the CIA, who
comes back onto the grid after a decade on the run.
When the South African safe house he’s remanded
to is attacked by mercenaries, rookie operative Matt
Weston (Reynolds) escapes with him. On the run,
the unlikely partners must discover if their attackers
were sent by terrorists or someone on the inside. And
Weston must fi gure out who he can trust before they’re
both eliminated from the game.
W Universal / Phyllis Bagdadi
IMAGES ©2011 QUARTET! PROJECT
IMAGE © 2010 UNIVERSAL STUDIOS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
RA.ONE
DIRECTOR: ANUBHAV SINAH
STARRING: SHARUKH KHAN, KAREENA KAPOOR, ARJUN
RAMPAL, RAJNIKANTH, PRIYANKA CHOPRA & SANJAY DUTT
Video game designer Shekhar (Khan), under pressure
from his employers to come up with a winner, decides
to design a game based on his son Prateek’s idea
that the antagonist should be more powerful than
the protagonist. The game proves a winner, and for
a while Shekhar’s life improves immeasurably. But
things take a dark turn when Prateek decides to play
the game and is interrupted before he can fi nish the
level. The game’s antagonist, Ra.One, decides that
Prateek must die. Shekhar must dig deep to fi nd and
destroy his own creation before it destroys those he
loves most.
W Eros International / Prashant Gaonkar
SHERLOCK HOLMES: A
GAME OF SHADOWS
DIRECTOR: GUY RITCHIE
STARRING: ROBERT DOWNEY, JR., JUDE LAW, NOOMI RAPACE,
JARED HARRIS, EDDIE MARSAN, STEPHEN FRY
Around the globe, headlines break the news: a scandal
takes down an Indian cotton tycoon; a Chinese opium
trader dies of an apparent overdose; bombings in
Strasbourg and Vienna; the death of an American
steel magnate. No one sees the thread connecting
these random events – no one, that is, except the great
Sherlock Holmes, who discerns a web of death and
destruction and, sitting at its centre, a singularly sinister
spider: the evil genius Professor James Moriarty.
W Warner Bros. / Jeff Crawford
IMAGES © DREAMWORKS II DISTRIBUTION PHOTO MELISSA MOSELY /

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MAGAZINE
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122
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THE SORCERER AND THE WHITE SNAKE
DIRECTOR: TONY CHING SIU-TUNG
STARRING: JET LI, EVA HUANG, CHARLENE CHOI, RAYMOND LAM
Legend has it that in the primeval forests of China live two evil spirits that manifest as snakes: one white and one
green. While searching for plants in the mountains, young herbalist Xu Xian (Lam) accidentally falls into a lake.
The white snake, transforming into beautiful young woman, Bai Suzhen (Huang), comes to his rescue. Her passion
for the young man cannot be contained, and with the help of green snake (Choi), she ventures into the human
world to marry Xu, although he remains ignorant of what she really is.
W (limited territories) Emphasis Video Entertainment Ltd / Grace Lau
THIS MEANS WAR
DIRECTOR: MCG
STARRING: REESE WITHERSPOON, CHRIS PINE, TOM HARDY
In this epic action-comedy, Chris Pine (Star Trek)
and Tom Hardy (Inception) play the world’s top two
covert CIA operatives. Both are trained assassins and
master spies. They’ve saved the world on countless
occasions, but these partners and best friends are
about to experience the one situation way beyond
their formidable skills when they realise they’re both
in love with Lauren (Reese Witherspoon). For the nowdivided
duo, this means war – and they’re coming at
each other with arsenals capable of bringing down a
small country.
W 20th Century Fox / Julian Levin
FEBRUARY 2012
IMAGE © 2012 TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX FILM CORPORATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
TOOTH FAIRY 2
DIRECTOR: ALEX ZAAM
STARRING: LARRY THE CABLE GUY
When dreamer Larry Guthrie loses his fi rst love to
the town hot shot, he decides to win her back by
volunteering with the local children at her afterschool
programme. But when Larry accidentally tells the kids
the tooth fairy is make-believe, he is soon transformed
into a tutu-clad fairy and sentenced to collecting
teeth. Starring Larry the Cable Guy, a much-beloved
stand-up comedian who was one of the co-stars of
the popular Blue Collar Comedy Tour as well as fi lms
such as Delta Farce, Cars and Cars 2, Tooth Fairy 2
promises fun for all the family.
W 20th Century Fox / Julian Levin
IMAGE © 2011 TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX FILM CORPORATION AND WALDEN MEDIA, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
STARRY STARRY NIGHT
DIRECTOR: SHU-YU LIN
STARRING: JOSIE XU, RENE LIU, HARLEM YU, KENNETH TSANG,
HUI MING LIN, JANEL TSAI, LUN MEI GWEI
Twelve-year-old Mei grew up with her grandparents
in the mountains where the stars were most beautiful,
but now lives with her parents in the city. Her parents
constantly fi ght and ignore her at home. Mei withdraws
into her own world and imagination, her only escape is
through her memories of the starry night. One day Mei
meets and takes a liking to transfer student Jay, who
seems as withdrawn from the world as Mei. After Mei
saves Jay from bullies, their friendship becomes real.
As Mei’s home life worsens and her parents announce
their divorce, Mei and Jay plan their escape.
I (whole of Asia) Cai Chang International Inc. /
Nancy Liu
TOWER HEIST
DIRECTOR: BRETT RATNER
STARRING: BEN STILLER, EDDIE MURPHY, ALAN ALDA,
TÉA LEONI
Ben Stiller and Eddie Murphy lead an all-star cast
in Tower Heist, a comedy caper about working men
who seek revenge on the Wall Street swindler who
stiffed them. After the workers at a luxury Central Park
condominium discover the penthouse billionaire has
stolen their retirement, they plot the ultimate revenge:
a heist to reclaim what he took from them. Though
amateurs, these rookie thieves know the building
better than anyone. It turns out they’ve been casing the
place for years; they just didn’t know it!
W Universal / Phyllis Bagdadi
IMAGE © 2012 UNIVERSAL STUDIOS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

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TRAIN BRAIN EXPRESS
DIRECTOR: YOSHIMITSU MORITA
STARRING: KENICHI MATSUYAMA, EITA
Komachi, an employee at Nozomi Estate, and Kodama, the son and heir to the Kodama Ironworks, both love
hobby trains. They quickly become friends after meeting by chance. Then Komachi is transferred to Kyushu, where
he must convince a major company to merge with Nozomi Estate. But he struggles to convince the company
president to partner with Nozomi Estate. However, when it turns out that the president also happens to be a train
enthusiast and fi nds kindred spirits in Komachi and Kodama, business takes a turn for the better.
W (except Japan) Encore Infl ight Limited / Edwin Cheung
THE VOW
DIRECTOR: MICHAEL SUCSY
STARRING: RACHEL MCADAMS, CHANNING TATUM, SAM
NEILL, SCOTT SPEEDMAN AND JESSICA LANGE
Based on real events, heartfelt romantic drama The
Vow tells the story of a newlywed couple who get into
a horrifi c car accident that put Paige (McAdams) in a
coma. After Paige wakes up with severe memory loss,
she works hard to rebuild her identity and her life,
while her husband Leo (Tatum) endeavours to win her
heart again. The Vow is an uplifting tearjerker starring
two of Hollywood’s hottest young talents.
W (Bahamas, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands,
Canada, St. Martin, USA) Sony Pictures Releasing /
Rana Matthes
WANDERLUST
DIRECTOR: DAVID WAIN
STARRING: JENNIFER ANISTON, PAUL RUDD
George (Rudd) and Linda (Aniston) are an
overextended, stressed-out Manhattan couple.
After George is downsized out of his job, they fi nd
themselves with only one option: to move in with
George’s awful brother in Atlanta. On the way there,
George and Linda stumble upon Elysium, an idyllic
community populated by colourful characters who
embrace a different way of looking at things.
Is Elysium the fresh start George and Linda need? Or
will the change of perspective cause more problems
than it solves?
W Universal / Phyllis Bagdadi
INFLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT | UPCOMING AIRLINE MOVIE RELEASES
DISTRIBUTION RIGHTS CODES: N = NORTH AMERICA I = OUTSIDE NORTH AMERICA W = WORLDWIDE RELEASE
IMAGE © 2012 UNIVERSAL STUDIOS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED IMAGE ©2012 TRAINBRAIN EXPRESS FILM PARTNERS
UNDERWORLD AWAKENING
DIRECTORS: MÅNS MÅRLIND AND BJÖRN STEIN
STARRING: KATE BECKINSALE, STEPHEN REA, MICHAEL EALY,
THEO JAMES, INDIA EISLEY AND CHARLES DANCE
Underworld Awakening brings a stunning new
dimension to the epic battle between vampires and
Lycans, as the fi rst fi lm in the franchise to shoot in 3D.
Kate Beckinsale, star of the fi rst two fi lms, returns in her
lead role as the vampire warrior Selene, who escapes
imprisonment to fi nd herself in a world where humans
have discovered the existence of both vampire and
Lycan clans, and are conducting an all-out war to
eradicate both immortal species. Though Selene has
dedicated her life to exterminating Lycans, she fi nds
they now have a common enemy: humans.
W (except France, Gibraltar, Malta/English, UK)
Sony Pictures Releasing / Rana Matthes
THE WAR OF THE BUTTONS
(LA GUERRE DES BOUTONS)
DIRECTOR: YANN SAMUELL
STARRING: ERIC ELMOSNINO, MATHILDE SEIGNER, FRED
TESTO, ALAIN CHABAT
France, 1960. A band of village boys wages an
uncompromising battle against the kids from the
neighbouring village. It’s war of honour and allegiance
in which humiliation is the most fearsome form of
defeat and no tactic is too extreme. Based on an
internationally bestselling French novel, The War of the
Buttons is a tender family comedy about the meaning
of independence and solidarity, wars big and small,
childhood, and coming of age.
W (except France) SKEYE / Isabelle Bégin
APEX | AIRLINE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE
125

126
INFLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT | UPCOMING AIRLINE MOVIE RELEASES
DISTRIBUTION RIGHTS CODES: N = NORTH AMERICA I = OUTSIDE NORTH AMERICA W = WORLDWIDE RELEASE
WAR HORSE
DIRECTOR: STEVEN SPIELBERG
STARRING: EMILY WATSON, DAVID THEWLIS, PETER MULLAN, NIELS ARESTRUP, TOM HIDDLESTON, BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH
Directed by Steven Spielberg, this epic adventure of friendship and war follows a young man named Albert and
his horse, Joey. Their bond is forcibly broken when Joey is sold to the cavalry and sent to the trenches of
World War I, where he changes and inspires the lives of all he meets. Albert, despite being too young to enlist,
heads to France to bring his friend home. War Horse is an odyssey of joy and sorrow, passionate friendship
and high adventure.
W (except India) Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Non-Theatrical, Inc. / Linda Palmer / Ruth Walker
WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT
KEVIN
DIRECTOR: LYNNE RAMSAY
STARRING: TILDA SWINTON, JOHN C. REILLY, EZRA MILLER
A suspenseful and gripping psychological thriller,
Lynne Ramsay’s fi lm explores the fractious relationship
between a mother and son. Tilda Swinton, in a bracing,
tour-de-force performance, plays the mother, Eva,
as she contends for 15 years with the increasing
malevolence of her fi rst-born child, Kevin. Based on the
best-selling novel of the same name, We Need To Talk
About Kevin explores the nature vs. nurture debate on
a whole new level.
N (USA only) Terry Steiner International /
Nadja K. Rutkowski
FEBRUARY 2012
IMAGE COURTESY OF OSCILLOSCOPE LABORATORIES
WISH YOU WERE HERE
DIRECTOR: KIERAN DARCY-SMITH
STARRING: JOEL EDGERTON, TERESA PALMER, FELICITY
PRICE, ANTONY STARR
Four friends lose themselves in a carefree South-
East Asian holiday. Only three come back. Dave and
Alice return home to their young family desperate for
answers about Jeremy’s mysterious disappearance.
When Alice’s sister Steph returns not long after, a nasty
secret is revealed about the night her boyfriend went
missing. But it is only the fi rst of many. Who among
them knows what happened on that fateful night when
they were dancing under a full moon in Cambodia?
W (except Australia and New Zealand) Encore
Infl ight Limited / Edwin Cheung
IMAGE © DREAMWORKS II DISTRIBUTION CO, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
WE BOUGHT A ZOO
DIRECTOR: CAMERON CROWE
STARRING: MATT DAMON, SCARLETT JOHANSSON, THOMAS
HADEN CHURCH
We Bought a Zoo is a funny, inspiring and true story
about the magical power of family to persevere in the
face of extraordinary challenges. This is acclaimed
fi lmmaker Cameron Crowe’s (Jerry Maguire) fi rst
motion picture for all audiences, and stars Matt Damon,
Scarlett Johansson and Thomas Haden Church.
Damon portrays a single dad who, looking to give his
family a much-needed fresh start, moves to a home
situated in the middle of a zoo, which he and his two
children will attempt to bring back to its once glorious
state. The fi lm weaves together warmth, laughter and a
spirit of optimism that is perfect for all audiences.
W 20th Century Fox / Julian Levin
THE WOMAN IN BLACK
DIRECTOR: JAMES WATKINS
STARRING: DANIEL RADCLIFFE, CIARAN HINDS, JANET MCTEER
The story follows a young lawyer, Arthur Kipps
(Radcliffe), who is ordered to travel to a remote village
and sort out a recently deceased client’s papers. As he
works alone in the client’s isolated house, Kipps begins
to uncover tragic secrets, his unease growing when he
glimpses a mysterious woman dressed only in black.
Receiving only silence from the locals, Kipps is forced
to uncover the true identity of the Woman in Black on
his own, leading to a desperate race against time when
he discovers her true intent.
I (except UK, France, Spain) Jaguar Distribution /
Peter George
IMAGE © 2011 TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX FILM CORPORATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
IMAGE © EXCLUSIVE MEDIA GROUP, 2011 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

128
INFLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT | UPCOMING AIRLINE MOVIE RELEASES
DISTRIBUTION RIGHTS CODES: N = NORTH AMERICA I = OUTSIDE NORTH AMERICA W = WORLDWIDE RELEASE
FEBRUARY 2012
THE WOMAN KNIGHT OF MIRROR LAKE
DIRECTOR: HERMAN YAU
STARRING: DENNIS TO, CRYSTAL HUANG, ANTHONY WONG
The more Qiu Jin (Huang) studies, the more she loves her country. Born into a wealthy family during the Qing
Dynasty, she is well-schooled in the martial arts, horse riding and archery. Though the free-spirited Qiu is raised in
a liberal-minded family, she is still expected to agree to an arranged marriage to a wealthy but dull man. Seven
years later, she leaves her husband and their two children behind and goes to Japan, where her left-wing ideals
and revolutionary aspirations are cultivated by Dr Sun Yat-sen’s Tokyo-based Tongmenghui.
W (except China) Emphasis Video Entertainment Ltd / Grace Lau
ADVERTISERS INDEX
FEBRUARY 2012
AeroMobile
www.aeromobile,net
SEE PAGE 68
Aero Vista Entertainment
www.aerovisa.com
SEE PAGE 124
Airbus
www.airbus.com
SEE PAGE 88 & 89
Air Travel Video Technologies
www.atvllc
SEE PAGE 99
Arinc
www.arinc.com
SEE PAGE 51
Astronics
www.astronics.com
SEE PAGE 103
Astronics
www.astronics.com
SEE PAGE 17
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
www.abccontentsales.com.au
SEE PAGE 43
Avid Airline Productions
www.avidproducts.com
SEE PAGE 123
Bucher
www.bucher-group.com
SEE PAGE 86
Carlisle Interconnect
Technologies
www.carlisleit.com
SEE PAGE 67
Cine Magnetics Digital
www.cinemagnetics.com
SEE PAGE 97
Dawson Media Direct
www.dawsonmd.com
SEE PAGE 73
Driessen Aerospace Group NV
www.driessen.com
SEE PAGE 83
digEcor
www.digecor.com
SEE PAGE 59
Emphasis Video Entertainment
www.emphasis.net
SEE PAGE 113
Eros International Media PVT Ltd.
www.erosentertainment.com
SEE PAGE 121
Guest Logix
www.guestlogix.com
SEE PAGE 95
IFPL
www.ifpl.com
SEE PAGE 49
Imagik International Corporation
www.imagikcorp.com
SEE PAGE 37
Infl ight Dublin Ltd.
www.infl ightdublin.com
SEE PAGE 65
Infl ight Entertainment Products
www.ifeproducts.com
SEE PAGE 131
Jaguar Distribution Corporation
www.jaguardc.com
SEE PAGE 111
Jamco
www.jamco-america.com
SEE PAGE 33
KID Systeme GmbH
www.kid-systeme.de
SEE PAGE 46
Linstol
www.linstol.com
SEE PAGE 118
Long Prosper Enterprise
Company Ltd.
www.longprosper.com
SEE PAGE 127
LSG Sky Chefs
www.lsgskychefs.com
SEE PAGE 79
Lufthansa Systems
www.lhsystems.com
SEE PAGE 13
Lumexis Corporation
www.lumexis.com
SEE PAGE 76
Panasonic Avionics Corporation
www.panasonic.aero
SEE PAGE 15
Post Modern Group
www.postmoderngroup.com
SEE PAGE 2
YOUNG ADULT
DIRECTOR: JASON REITMAN
STARRING: CHARLIZE THERON, PATRICK WILSON,
J.K. SIMMONS, ELIZABETH REASER , PATTON OSWALT,
EMILY MEADE
Reuniting director Jason Reitman (Thank You For
Smoking, Up In The Air, Juno), and screenwriter
Diablo Cody (Juno, Jennifer’s Body), Young Adult
stars Charlize Theron as Mavis Gary, a writer of teen
literature who returns to her small hometown to relive
her glory days and attempt to reclaim her happily
married high school sweetheart (Patrick Wilson).
When returning home proves more diffi cult than she
thought, Mavis forms an unusual bond with a former
classmate (Patton Oswalt) who hasn’t quite got over
high school either.
W Paramount / Mark Horton
Purple Infl ight Entertainment
Pvt Ltd.
www.purpleentertainment.com
SEE PAGE 105
Rockwell Collins
www.rockwellcollins.com
SEE PAGE 24
Skeye infl ight entertainment
www.skeye.tv
SEE PAGE 97
Skyline IFE Ltd
www.skyline-ife.co.uk
SEE PAGE 132
Sky Films
www.skyfi lms.com
SEE PAGE 5
Sony Pictures Releasing
www.sonypicturesinfl ight.com
SEE PAGE 109
Technicolor
www.technicolor.com
SEE PAGE 35
TDI Power
www.tdipower.com
SEE PAGE 62
Tecom Industries Ltd.
www.tecom-ind.com
SEE PAGE 84
Thales Avionics Inc.
www.thales-ifs.com
SEE PAGE 53
The IMS Company
www.imsco-us.com
SEE PAGE 31
The In-Flight Entertainment
Company
www.theinfl ightentertainment.
co.uk
SEE PAGE 19
Turner Infl ight Services
www.turnerinfl ightservices.com
SEE PAGE 116
Video Technology Services Inc.
www.videotechnologyservices.
com
SEE PAGE 91
Walt Disney Studios Motion
Pictures
www.ebvnt-Disney.com
SEE PAGE 6
Warner Bros Distributing Inc.
wbnts.warnerbros.com
SEE PAGE 20
Warner Bros Distributing Inc
wbnts.warnerbros.com
SEE PAGE 115
VT Miltope
www.miltope.com
SEE PAGE 86
Zodiac Aerospace
www.zodiacaerospace.com
SEE PAGE 23

APEX TV MARKET
CONFERENCE
16-18 APRIL 2012
Brighton Dome | Brighton, England
Featuring:
Preset Appointments
TV-centric Education Sessions
Great Networking Events
The Famous TV Quiz
Online registration coming soon!
Exhibitors, to book a booth visit apex.aero.

130
CLOSING
HEAVENLY HOSTS
FEBRUARY 2012
When my feet are so swollen that they hardly fi t into my
shoes, I know I’m not on the ground. When my knees are
hurting so badly from being rammed by the seat in front
of me that I assume the “seated foetal” position (oh yes I
do!), I know I’m not on the ground. When I fi nd myself fi ddling with
my left earphone for two hours in order to properly hear the movie Th e
Help, and then when I cry in front of strangers and feel silly but keep
on crying because the movie is so bloody honest, I know I’m not on
the ground. I’m someplace else, far above the clouds. I’m airborne, in
economy class on a long-haul fl ight, wiping my nose on my sleeve.
And if it weren’t for that blessed movie, I’d be in unadulterated agony.
So why on earth do so many companies involved in the passenger
experience promise that they’re going to duplicate in the air the kind
of experience we’re accustomed to encountering on the ground? Th e
environmental factors alone make such a lofty goal impossible to
achieve. Do you constrain yourself to a 32in seat pitch when watching
a movie in your living room or do you lounge on a comfortable couch?
Do you watch that movie on a tiny screen or do you view it on a fl atscreen
TV? When you access Wi-Fi in your home, are you forced to
plug in your credit card details for each and every session and endure
being throttled to preserve bandwidth for others or do you enjoy
unfettered, truly high-speed access to the internet?
Perhaps it’s time for industry stakeholders to take a diff erent
approach. C. S. Lewis once said, “Aim at heaven and you will get earth
thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither.” Th e philosophical Mister
Lewis certainly wasn’t providing advice on how to make the passenger
FEBRUARY 2012
experience a better one, but just think about what can be accomplished
if we applied his thinking to it anyways.
Acknowledging that an enclosed aircraft cabin carries innate
restrictions, how can airlines provide a heavenly experience to
passengers? Off ering dynamite customer service is the very fi rst place
to start. Happiness is contagious and nothing makes the passenger
experience more pleasant than a smiling, helpful, happy crew (see
Southwest Airlines).
Giving travellers the means to defi ne their own infl ight experience
must surely be the next step, and can be done by making available a
wide array of entertainment choices, connectivity “packages” (not
everyone needs full-blown internet access!), delicious meals, and the
ability to upgrade to a more comfortable seat without breaking the
proverbial bank. An aircraft cabin can still be a respite from the manic
pace of our lives on the ground.
Some carriers have already received the memo (you know who
you are). Perhaps they’ve realised that if travellers can expect a truly
pleasant and unique experience while in fl ight – one very diff erent
from their normal routine on the ground – they will once again look
forward to air travel and, gulp, start paying what they should pay for
tickets. If every airline felt that way, they would have the collective
clout to fi nally raise airfares to a level where crew are making a decent
wage (something to be happy about) and sustainable profi ts are
achievable. Saints above, it’s time to try.
MARY KIRBY

Quality You Deserve
at a Price You Can Afford
and did we mention it's almost all Plug-And-Play?!
Come see what we can do for you – Booth 6G15 Aircraft Interiors Expo – Hamburg 2012
What you have now What you have after our
LED Overhaul
Upgrade without
Replacing with our
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850 Commerce Parkway Carpentersville, IL 60110 USA | P 847-844-7367 | F 847-844-1068 | info@ifeproducts.com | www.ifeproducts.com

IMAGINATION TAKES FLIGHT
At Skyline, we don’t just deliver inflight entertainment. We help airlines create
unforgettable experiences for their passengers.
Imagination takes flight
when you choose the
right company to design
your inflight entertainment .
Discover how Skyline’s attentive ,
personalised approach will help
your entertainment services
achieve new heights.
www.skyline-ife.com