Boat International — January 2018

luxury veneer. Replacing traditional structures with

composites can reduce an aircraft’s weight by

up to 33 per cent. Almost anything can be added

over the substrate – the likes of gold leaf, marble

or bespoke wood marquetry – but in small

amounts.“It’saboutusingthematerialsin

clever ways, so the marble or precious stone for

thebathroomortabletopwillbeonly4-5mmthick,

butitwillbetheverybestmarbleorprecious

stone. This is what makes the difference to a client

looking for something special and unique,” says

Ascheri. “We recently installed the most expensive

wood veneer in the world.”

There is the option of applying “faux finishes”

–castpolycarbonatemimicstheeffectofcrystal,

forinstance,andisafractionoftheweightbutfor

the most part, discerning jet owners are looking

for the real deal; Greenline recently installed

The ACE (Aircraft

Customizations by

Embraer) seat for

aPhenom100uses

carbon fibre and

exposes structure

to shed 1.8kg

Theloungeandbararea

of the new VVIP Boeing BBJ

scheme by Winch Design

demonstrates the attention

to detail in jet design

It may not be easy for private jet cabin

designerstomeetthedemandsoftheir

discerningclienteleandtheFAA,but

they’re still finding new and interesting

ways to do so, says Tory Kingdon

BLUE SKIES

THINKING

>>

>>WHEN IT COMES TO CREATIVITY, strictly

imposed rules and regulations can be somewhat

stifling. “There are no rules here; we’re trying to

accomplish something,” American inventor Thomas

Edison famously said. In the world of private

aviation, interior designers must comply with the

Federal Aviation Administration’s uncompromising

requirements regarding the weight and

combustibility of materials on board. So how do

you create something unique when working within

such restrictive boundaries?

“It’s very difficult to be innovative in a cabin

scheme,” says Gianluca Ascheri, MD of Greenline

Interiors’aviationdivision.“Whenyouinstallanew

material, it’s not just the final finish but the whole

structure that must undergo the burn test. So it’s

much easier to go with a material that’s already

beenapprovedthanintroduceanewone.”

Whilemosttextilescanbetreatedtomeet

the requirements, the process can change the

characteristicsofmaterial,turningsilkinto

something less tactile. “We want the finishes to be

inasnaturalaformaspossible,soweneedto

chooseleathersandfabricsweknowwillretain

theiroriginaltextureandfeelafterbeingtreated,”

saysJimDixon,headofaviationatWinchDesign.

Whenitcomestoweightconstraints,thereare

the legal requirements but it also makes sense

to reduce bulk as much as possible, saving the

owner fuel and enabling them to fly further faster.

Attentiontodetailwhenitcomestoweight

considerationiskey;anadditionalfractionof

an inch in the thickness of carpet, when used over

a large area, can be enough to tip the scale.

Composite materials are now more commonly

seenininteriorsaswellasintheframeof

theaircraft,oftenusedasthebaseofamore

boatinternational.com

01/2018

crystal Lalique taps in an airplane bathroom.

“Customers appreciate that there are

restrictive certification requirements in

airplanes but they expect a certain quality of

materialsandattentiontodetailinorderto

create the level of luxury they’re used to,” says

Dixon.Winch’srecentdesignofaVVIPBoeing

BBJincludessilver-fleckeddarkveneerpanels

and buttery soft cream leather seating that

features hand-stitched motifs, also

embroidered on the valance panels and

carpets. The five-seater dining table is finished

with shagreen and accessories are made from

mother-of-pearl. The intention was to create

a scheme that was tactile, elegant and

“unapologetically masculine,” says Dixon.

EmbraerExecutiveJetsislookingatwaysof

creating a luxury finish by exposing elements

ofthecabin’scarbonfibrestructure.“Icallit

industrial chic,” says Jay Beever, VP of interior

design. “We’re creating lighter weight opportunities

throughindustrialdesignofthesortyou’dsee

in residential schemes.” This was put into practice

for a recent customer who was interested in an

all-black interior for his Phenom 100 ACE. Rather

than opting for a wood treatment, the designers

exposed a large amount of the substrate.

“Atfirstglanceitlookslikeapiano-blackaircraft

interior, but when the light hits the panels you

have the three-dimensional feel of the carbon

fibreweave.It’sbeautiful,veryelegant,”says

Beever. “It also cleverly reflects the client’s love

of Bugatti race cars.”

Traditional fabrics are undergoing an evolution,

too. Leather is no longer simply a necessity to cover

unsightly surfaces but is used as a design feature,

sometimes woven, embossed or with a metallic

AVIATION80