China Airlines Acquires First 777-300ER Featuring “Family Couches”

China Airlines acquired its first of 10 Boeing 777-300ER last week and plans to begin service on Friday.

On October 3, China Airlines took delivery of a new Boeing 777-300ER jet at a ceremony in Everett, Wash. It’s the first of 10 777-300ER Taiwan’s largest airline will introduce by the end of 2016, according to a statement from Boeing, with six of the aircraft on direct order and four via leases. The 10 aircraft will eventually replace nine of the 747-400 currently in China Airlines’ fleet.

The wide-body jet begins service on October 10 with round-trip flights from Taiwan to Hong Kong. Later in the month, China Airlines will take delivery of its second 777-300ER. A third 777-300ER is scheduled to be delivered in November, according to Airline News. In December, the carrier will begin using the new 777-300ER on twice-daily flights to Los Angeles, and in 2015, it plans to fly the aircraft to San Francisco, New York and Frankfurt.

Each of China Airlines’ 777-300ER is configured to seat 358 passengers — 40 seats in business class, 62 seats in premium economy and 256 seats in economy. First-class cabins feature 180-degree flat beds in a herringbone configuration.

“China Airlines is making a pioneering move in the airline industry to incorporate Taiwan’s cultural creativity into its cabin interior,” China Airlines Chairman Huang-Hsiang Sun said in the Boeing statement.

The aircraft interiors were designed by architect Ray Chen and incorporate strong branding elements from the island nation, including bamboo accents and multi-hued lighting programed to celebrate major events in Taiwan’s calendar, such as Chinese New Year, the moon festival and Christmas.

A high-ceilinged lounge by the doorway in business class serves teas, coffees and deserts alongside a library. Another unique feature is a 10-row seating area featuring “Family Couches,” where three economy seats morph into a flat area suited to families, an innovation first introduced by Air New Zealand in 2011. A China Airlines spokesperson said the unique interiors increase fuel burn, however, and this may necessitate a fuel stop on long-haul routes.

[Photo: Now News]