Etihad’s luxury onboard apartment named top in-flight story of 2014

In their list of top 10 ‘Up in the Air' passenger experience stories of 2014, editors at Future Travel Experience named Etihad's The Residence the most popular in-flight story of the year. In May, the flagship carrier of the United Arab Emirates garnered international headlines when it gave the world a preview of its newest innovation, a sumptuous flying hotel suite aboard its A380 aircraft that has been touted as the gold standard in luxury flying. In addition to a living room space, bedroom, and en-suite bathroom -- complete with shower -- the deal also comes with a personal ‘Jeeves' butler. After The Residence, experts said that personalized customer service is poised to change the in-flight travel landscape via technology and 'big data.' In recent years, airlines such as Emirates, Delta, British Airways, Iberia, KLM and Eva Air for instance, have equipped their cabin crews with tablets, allowing flight attendants to access passenger flight information such as loyalty status, in-flight buying habits, food and wine preferences. Other popular in-flight stories of 2014 include cabin redesign ideas that include tray tables with built-in slots for tablets, and bigger overhead cabins to accommodate the rise in carry-on bags, following the rise in checked-baggage fees. Source: Euronews