Hawaiian Airlines just unveiled the reimagined cabins that will be featured on its new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners when the aircraft enter service in early 2024, complete with tip-to-tail interior upgrades, including the Honolulu-based carrier’s new business-class Leihōkū Suites, revamped economy seats, and an interior design inspired by the islands.
Here’s a closer look at Hawaiian Airlines’ new planes.
The pods include an 18-inch in-flight entertainment screen, personal outlets, and wireless charging.
Courtesy of Hawaiian Airlines
Leihōkū Suites
Of the 300 seats on the Dreamliners, the first 34 will be business class, dubbed the Leihōkū Suites. It’s an appropriate name (it means garland of stars in Hawaiian), considering the ceiling throughout the plane is meant to simulate the sky—throughout the journey, the lighting will shift from sunset to a starry evening sky that depicts the same constellations that once guided Polynesian voyagers.
Those in the Leihōkū Suites will have arguably the best views of the changing sky, as their seats, which will be personal pods with closeable doors, will be able to lie fully flat. The pods will include an 18-inch in-flight entertainment screen, personal outlets, and wireless charging. The seats will be arranged in a one-two-one configuration, giving each guest aisle access. And the middle two pods can lower the partition to create a double seat. Guests in the window seats will have extra-large, dimmable windows.
In developing the Leihōkū Suites, Hawaiian became the first airline to partner with Adient Aerospace, a joint venture between Adient and the Boeing Company that focuses on airplane seats (though, because of a delivery delay, Qatar Airways is already flying the same suites on its Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners).
There’s no word yet on what the in-flight experience will look like, such as the food and beverage offering and any additional amenities.
During boarding, the ceiling is meant to look like a sunset.
Courtesy of Hawaiian Airlines/Robert Ferguson
Economy seats
The remaining 266 seats will be in economy (79 are “Extra Comfort” seats, which will have more legroom). The seats will be Collin Aerospace’s (a company that makes aerospace and interior systems for commercial aircraft) Aspire design, meaning they will have ergonomically contoured back and armrests. The seats will include a 12-inch monitor with USB-A and USB-C charging ports, and they’ll be arranged in a three-three-three configuration.
Design detail include a lavatory image that shows a male and female figure in a Hawaiian shirt and dress.
Courtesy of Hawaiian Airlines/Robert Ferguson
Cabin design
According to a press release, Hawaiian worked with Teague, an interior design company, to create an “interior that pays homage to Hawaiʻi’s pristine environment” and Pacific navigators.
“There were five key elements that really came out from the discovery that the Hawaiians used to navigate,” Loreto Julian, a design manager at Teague, which consulted on the designs, told AFAR. “Those are the sun, the stars, wind, ocean and wildlife. So those were kind of our key drivers as we started to look at the whole cabin interior in itself. The entryway of the plane has one of its most symbolic features. It boasts a combination of koa wood, flank panels, and a ceiling dome with a relief pattern being emblematic of the traditional warmth the island is known for.”
Other design elements will include curved forms throughout the plane that symbolize the islands’ wind and waves, lavatory flooring that is inspired by black volcanic sand, and laminates and fabrics that evoke native Hawaiian plants. The Hawaiian language will also also be used in the row numbers and placards throughout the plane. And even the lavatory occupancy signs will show male and female figures in Hawaiian dress.
