16 October 2023 , 15:11
592
0
A new airline is targeting sleep loving passengers by only including lie-back seats on its planes.
Next month Beond will begin operation with flights from Munich, Riyadh and Zurich to Velana International airport in the Maldives. Later on the start-up will introduce services from Milan and Dubai to Male.
What stands the airline apart from others doing the same routes is the layout of its cabin. Beond's Airbus A319 aircraft will feature 44 lay-flat seats. There will be no economy, business or first class divides, instead every passenger will enjoy the same level of comfort.
That aircraft will also be on display at the upcoming Dubai Air Show in mid-November, where aviation enthusiasts will be able to see how much room the 'luxury' configuration - as the airline is branding it - will afford those lucky enough to be onboard.
From next year the company will take delivery of Airbus A321LR/XLR which will 68 passenger seats each. After five years of operating the airline hopes to have 32 planes connecting 60 destinations. The operator has labelled itself “the world’s first premium leisure airline” and doesn’t use the term business class.
Red Arrow pilot forced to send out emergency alert after bird smashes into jet
All 44 of the passenger seats will be lie-flat (Instagram/flybeond)The airline is based in Dubai although its operations are centred around the Maldives, which is one of the largest tourist destinations in the world, with 1.6million people visiting there a year. Tourism is the small island nation's largest single industry.
Beond says it will be offering some of the cheapest costs per mile flown for long-haul destinations, Trade Arabia reported. The firm has not listed how much specific flights will cost, but some fares are expected to be around £1,300 one way per passenger, depending on destinations.
Currently the first batch of tickets are on sale, with a flight from Riyadh to Male, Maldives starting from approximately £1,500 including taxes. A return flight from Munich to Male starts at approximately £2,370 whereas return fares from Zurich begin from just a little over £3,000.
By way of comparison, it is possible to buy return flights from the Maldives to London - with one stop - for £574 with Saudia and £662 with Etihad.
Tero Taskila, CEO of Beond, and a founder, said: “Welcome to Beond. Our aim is simple: to fly our customers to the most unique and unspoiled destinations where they can release their inner explorer on the most memorable vacation of their lives.
“Today is but the beginning of our vision for our customers, embodied by this beautiful aircraft — inside and out. We could not be more pleased to showcase it in Maldives, our home, and Dubai. We wish especially to thank the government of Maldives and our supporters there, the Maldives Civil Aviation Authority, and SIMDI Group — each of whom believed in our vision for a new airline in Maldives. Our team will do its best to bring tourists to this beautiful nation."
Whether or not Beond can make the lie-flat seat model works remains to be seen. BermudAir had planned to fly services with just 30 seats across 15 rows in an offering aimed at “business and premium leisure travellers” only. After just one flight, the airline said it would be introducing an economy option.