Dubai’s Emirates plows over $350m in inflight entertainment systems for A350 fleet

Dubai carrier Emirates is investing over $350m to equip its 50-strong fleet of A350s with next-generation inflight entertainment solutions.

The carrier has selected the new Thales’ AVANT Up system for its incoming Airbus A350 aircraft, scheduled for delivery in 2024. The new system from Thales will also provide an enhanced ‘live’ television solution that offers a broader choice of live television and news in the highest available definition, the airline said in a statement.

We’re levelling up our inflight entertainment experience by bringing Thales’ AVANT Up system to be part of our incoming Airbus A350 aircraft, scheduled for delivery in 2024. ✈️ https://t.co/NdPqRUygBu @thalesgroup pic.twitter.com/KObWYaVLK2

— Emirates Airline (@emirates) September 8, 2022

Customers can avail enhance passenger connectivity with Optiq – the first smart display in the industry to offer two Bluetooth connections, built-in Wi-Fi for passengers to pair multiple devices including phones, tablets, headphones or even game controllers, while supporting up to 60 watts USB-C to fast-charge personal devices, the statement added.

The carrier has opted for a variety of AVANT Up digital services, including integrated personalisation features, expanded personal electronic device (PED) capabilities, and user interface enhancements which also enable visually impaired passengers to have an immersive experience. Meanwhile, the technology in the new system features Optiq 4k QLED HDR displays.

Emirates’ ice inflight entertainment product offers over 5,000 channels of multi-language content including live TV, movies, TV shows and music, and the world’s first inflight shopping channel, EmiratesRED.

Adel al Redha, Emirates’ chief operating officer said: “Emirates has always regarded inflight entertainment as an essential aspect of our onboard experience, and we were in fact the first airline to put personal screens onto every single seat onboard when that was far from the norm over 30 years ago.

Today, Emirates ice remains unmatched in inflight entertainment content and experience, having won best-in-the-sky awards consecutively for the past 14 years. Our investment in next-generation Thales systems for our new A350 fleet will further our lead, enabling us to deliver even better experiences to our customers.”

“At Thales we are proud to partner with Emirates in their mission to Fly Better. Thales’ AVANT Up brings to Emirates the latest consumer technologies and capabilities to the aircraft,” added Yannick Assouad, executive vice-president, Thales Avionics. “Combining our Optiq 4K QLED HDR displays, award-winning dynamic power, and next generation digital services, Emirates customers can expect the extraordinary.”

Emirates and Thales also continue to collaborate on programmes through Dubai’s Aviation X-Lab, an aviation-specific incubator.

The airline has also commenced plans to upgrade the entire interior cabins of 120 Airbus A380 and Boeing 777 aircraft.

Read: UAE’s Emirates to commence largest known fleet retrofit project in November

The project, representing a multi-billion dollar investment, officially commences in November and aims to completely retrofit four Emirates aircraft from start to finish every month, continuously for over two years.