Finnair installing Lie-Flat Beds on Whole Long-Haul Fleet

Finnair is installing lie-flat beds on its whole long-haul fleet, the installations are expected to be completed in February 2006.

With the lie-flat beds, Finnair will offer a total of 36 seats in each intercontinental Business Class cabin compared to the current 42. Seat pitch will increase significantly from the presently generous 127 centimetres (50 inches) to 160 centimetres (63 inches). The new seat design allows more privacy for rest and work. The comfortable, French-design Majesty lie-flat seat allows even tall passengers to stretch out to sleep.

The seat's functions prevent its backrest from reclining into the seating area of the passenger behind, rather, with the aid of a quiet electronic mechanism, its back slides into positions allowing for rest and sleep in the passenger's own personal area. The height of the seat and lumbar region support can be controlled in addition to the reclining feature.

There are storage areas for magazines and laptops and privacy is enhanced by small separating partitions between the seats. Passengers can control the brightness of their personal reading lamp and each seat also has its own power outlet for personal computers or DVD players. There are satellite telephones available for the passengers' use and most Boeing MD-11 aircraft also have fax sending capabilities.

In addition to the lie-flat beds, improvements also include the complete renewal of the Boeing MD-11 entertainment system display units. New LCD monitor technology will also be used to enhance the enjoyment of movies and entertainment programmes for Economy Class passengers.

Finnair operates six Boeing MD-11 aircraft on a total of 140 monthly return long-haul flights to Bangkok, Tokyo, Osaka, Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore and New York. This winter season Finnair also flies to Miami and a new destination, Guangzhou in China, will be added to the network in September.

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