Mercedes gives airline an extra touch of class

The German car company's design team has partnered with German airline Lufthansa to create conceptual VIP cabins for short- and medium-haul flights. However, if the reaction from potential clients is strong enough, they could very well soon become a reality.

The VIP aircraft cabin concept, on show this week at the European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition (EBACE) 2015 in Geneva, takes a very architectural approach to luxury.

Working in conjunction with Luftansa Technik -- the airline's VIP and government airline servicing and design division, Mercedes-Benz Style (the car company's recently formed industrial design arm) has transferred its skills for fashioning luxury car cabins to aircraft interiors.

Focused on literally breaking down walls and clear right-angled delineations between the floor and ceiling, the cabin is designed so that it feels organic and flows like a spiral. It is an effect achieved via heavily contrasting colors and premium materials plus smart ambient lighting chosen to emphasize the sense of space.

"It was an inspiring challenge to transfer our design philosophy of sensual purity into the area of aeronautical engineering," said Gorden Wagener, Vice President Design Daimler AG. "Sensual surfaces and clear forms, combined with intelligent high-tech features and perfectly shaped modern luxury are the characteristic features of Mercedes-Benz design."

The furniture appears to blend into the cabin's floor and walls, and windows are shielded by ‘floating' black panels that can turn from opaque to transparent -- or be used as a display -- on command. The two companies have also taken a modular approach, meaning that the design can be extended with further sections for larger aircraft.

"Our goal is to offer a highly discerning global clientele a standard of interior design that leaves nothing to be desired. Whether for private or business use, our modular completion concept perfectly fits every purpose," says Walter Heerdt, Senior Vice President VIP & Executive Jet Solutions, Lufthansa Technik AG.