The Airplane - Jay Spenser [133]
Important as these benefits are, however, they are just one part of the 787’s clever use of technology. And as is true with all airplane designs, it is not just the technology itself but how people combine it.
The 787 cabin must lift passenger satisfaction to a new plateau, it must reconnect travelers with the wonders of flight, and it must be as much of a leap forward as is the airplane itself. These self-imposed goals guided Boeing and Teague designers as they developed an interior for the Dreamliner, which they felt should be an antidote to stress, crowding, and long lines at airport security checkpoints.
Building on everything its experts knew, and conducting pioneering studies to learn more, the interior design team met this goal in innovative ways. The sense of a very different travel experience begins right at the door, where a spacious, bright, and high-ceilinged entryway welcomes passengers coming off the jetway. This modulated use of space marks a transition in travelers’ minds, subliminally informing them that they have left their hassles behind.
Inside the Dreamliner, the spacious cabin with gently flowing curves and innovative lighting creates a sense of tranquil well-being. Heightening this perception, the interior employs the arch—an ancient symbol connoting strength and harmony—as its key theme. The sidewalls periodically constrict, suggesting archways that serve to define individual room-like areas within the airplane. Gone is the sense of a long tube, even though access remains open from front to rear. Depending on how airlines configure their 787s, galley and lavatory islands can also provide architectural boundaries.
In a case of trompe l’oeil, the overhead bins are much larger on the inside than they appear on the outside. Some let you slip even the largest carry-on cases in edgewise, short end first. This is possible because the fuselage’s inside arc does not follow the fuselage’s outer curve, resulting in an unprecedented amount of available stowage volume per passenger.
Whereas the cabin of other jets can drop to a pressure equivalent to an altitude of 8,000 feet (about 2,400 meters) in flight, the 787’s cabin altitude reaches only 6,000 feet (about 1,800 meters). Making this possible is the strength of composites, which permits a greater pressure differential between inside and outside. Boeing chose this lower limit based on aeromedical data showing that the headaches and fatigue experienced by many air travelers do not occur at or below a pressure equivalent to 6,000 feet.
And whereas the air of most jetliner cabins is extremely dry in flight, the 787’s cabin air is more humid to eliminate the irritated throat and contact lens distress many passengers experience. This higher humidity is possible because composites do not corrode.
Perhaps the Dreamliner cabin’s most striking feature is its windows, which are larger and taller. Whereas other jetliners’ windows serve just the immediate window-seat occupant or perhaps that seat row, the 787’s windows are visible above the tops of the seats so that they serve the entire cabin. This design feature lets passengers gaze freely at distant horizons and enjoy enhanced connectedness with the elements. Whether viewed directly or sensed peripherally, this link with the outside world is meaningful to us as a species on a fundamental level.
Larger windows rekindle an intimacy with the sky that air voyagers once took for granted but lost for most of the jet age. And although one might think that these large windows might alarm nervous fliers, the opposite is true because they reduce feelings of confinement and give meaning to sensed motions.
If passengers like, the 787’s windows can be electronically dimmed at the touch of a button. Flight attendants can also control these electrochromic windows globally to prevent bright ambient light from disrupting in-flight movies. An additional sense of connectedness