New MAYA Cabin Suite Concept Would Offer A 45" Curved Screen On Planes (2024)

Panasonic Avionics and Collins Aerospace have collaborated to design and introduce the MAYA seat concept, which includes a 45″ Curved OLED display, offering a fully immersive in-flight experience for passengers. The seat was introduced at the Aircraft Interiors Expo (AIX) event on May 28, 2024.

Business class seat for the next generation

Ken Sain, the chief executive officer (CEO) of Panasonic Avionics, looked back on the developments of passenger experience during his speech at AIX, saying that in the 1990s, airlines introduced motorized seats with adjustable headrests and footrests, followed by the first angled beds during the next decade.

Photo: Collins Aerospace, Panasonic Avionics

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In the 2010s, carriers introduced light flatbeds and innovations in the cabin layout, including direct aisle access for all business class passengers through the first herringbone configurations, followed by the reverse herringbones, allowing for better window access. Lastly, the 2020s saw the introduction of more privacy and super suites, with airlines now also adopting OLED screens inside their cabins.

“But what is next for business class? You cannot get flatter than 180 degrees. You cannot get more privacy by adding more doors. Adding space is super expensive. But more importantly, what will capture the imagination of the next generation of business class passengers over the next decade and beyond?”

Thus, Sain explained that Panasonic Avionics and Collins Aerospace began collaborating a year ago to develop the next-generation business class seat designed for millennial and Gen Z travelers, calling it the concept seat MAYA.

Immersive digital experience

In an interview with Simple Flying at AIX, Andrew Masson, the Vice President of Product Management, Portfolio Management, Strategy, and Marketing at Panasonic Avionics, explained that with MAYA, business class seats have gone from TVs and headrests to an immersive digital experience brought through the 45” inch 5K OLED screen.

“It is immersive. It is aimed at Gen X, Gen Z, Gen Alpha, and millennials. […] This is about the next level, it is the immersive experience focused on that real digital enabler.”

Masson pointed out that if a passenger is big into technology, it will be easy for them to get used to the new seat. Even if a traveler is not keen on the latest technological developments, it will take them minutes to get used to the new suite, with the executive adding that it is going to feel disappointing going from MAYA to a regular business class seat.

Concept seat

However, Masson emphasized that Maya was the culmination of all the products that are in development, which includes the in-flight entertainment (IFE) screen. According to the Panasonic Avionics executive, the companies are looking for feedback from airlines in particular, with Masson teasing that multiple airline CEOs were very excited about MAYA and the products fitted inside the business class seat at AIX.

Masson noted that while the introduction of Panasonic Avionics’ products depends on the seating manufacturers, the company will be ready to deliver its innovations by the end of 2026. “Obviously, we have a year’s head start with Collins Aerospace,” he added.

The Panasonic Avionics executive explained that MAYA was about pushing that premium class experience to the next level, enabling airlines to stand out. Masson commented that if a carrier was competing against five or so other airlines on the same route, yet the competition had a traditional business class experience, MAYA would enable the airline to “be head and shoulders above the rest.”

Photo: Collins Aerospace, Panasonic Avionics

According to a joint statement issued by Collins Aerospace and Panasonic Avionics, MAYA was the combination of the two companies’ respective expertise in design, technology development, and integration into a singular integrated solution.

The business class seat provides exceptional ergonomics with an advanced seating architecture and integrated ARISE comfort technology, which automatically optimizes cushion pressure, regulates temperature, and reduces peak vibration during flight.

MAYA also has the Astrova screen, which Panasonic Avionics launched at AIX in 2022, equipped with a headphone-less audio system, providing a cinema-like experience to its passengers and offering unprecedented immersion, customization, and personalized experiences.