Delta Air Lines is giving a new look to its cabin interiors. Here’s a look inside.

Delta Air Lines wants to improve its passengers’ experience before the plane even leaves the ground.

The airline, which will celebrate its centenary next year, announced Tuesday that it is embarking on a “nose-to-tail” redesign of its interior cabins. The refresh includes new seat fabrics and materials, mood lighting throughout the aircraft and memory foam padding in some cabins.

The interior facelift comes as the carrier vehicle, which was hit hard by the CrowdStrike global outage in July, reported a 26% drop in third-quarter profits.

The refresh is the result of extensive research into “changing customer expectations and lifestyles,” Delta said in its announcement, which highlighted the company’s commitment to “elevating the travel experience.” With passenger complaints increase in 2023even low-cost carriers like Southwest Airlines seek to offer consumers a more premium flight experience.

“As we embark on our next century of flight, this refreshed cabin interior infuses utility and beauty to create a fresh, elevated and timeless atmosphere while reflecting the evolving tastes and expectations of our customers,” Mauricio Parise, vice-president president of customer experience design. at Delta, said in a statement.

Here’s a look at what Delta passengers can expect from the redesign.

More elegant seats

Delta Comfort+ and main cabin passengers will benefit from technical leather seats with updated colors and red stripes. On wide-body aircraft, Delta Comfort+ and main cabin seats will have the added luxury of memory foam padding.

Premium passengers in the Delta One cabin will find seats covered in soft, breathable fabrics made from a blend of wool and nylon, according to the airline.

Despite the differences in fabrics and materials between different seating sections, the redesign aims to bring a premium look and feel to all cabins, making “everything cohesive”, according to a promotional video, so that “no matter what ‘it arrives, it looks brand new’. “.

Improved lighting

Delta’s new cabins will also feature what the company describes as “enhanced lighting programs” throughout the aircraft. “Every flight is different, so we focused on creating warm, calming and atmospheric lighting options that create an environment for customers to rest and relax, or stay productive as they wish,” Parise said.

This includes different lighting moods for different phases of flight. For example, during boarding, “we focused on the ‘deceleration moment’: warm, welcoming lighting that makes the cabin feel spacious and open,” according to Delta.

At mealtime: “We queue hues that make it feel like a candlelit dinner, making meals more natural and inviting.” »

Sleep Time: “As the lights dim for sleep, we borrow from the sunset and slowly remove blue light while bringing in warm amber tones that are reminiscent of the sunset glow.”

Wake-up time: “When it’s time to wake up, the cabin slowly illuminates in the morning and daylight.”

Upgraded bathrooms

As part of the refresh, the restrooms will feature light walls and calming blue cabinets. New smooth flooring with color flecks will ensure “improved cleanliness and safe traction,” according to Delta.

The new cabin design will debut later this fall on narrow-body Boeing 757 aircraft flying domestic and short international flights, according to Delta. The refurbished cabins of the Airbus A35 jumbo jets will follow in 2025, with the rest of the airline’s fleet expected to follow over “the coming years”.