ANA is moving forward with a new, no recline business class seat for its Boeing 787-9 fleet, with the introduction of THE Room FX at the Safran booth at the Paris Air Show today. The airline expects to add these seats to its fleet starting in 2026.
This is an expansion of the airline’s THE Room product on its Boeing 777-300ER fleet, highlighting ANA and Safran’s long-standing partnership.
“At Safran Seats, we are proud to deepen our long-standing partnership with ANA through the launch of ‘THE Room FX,'” said Victoria Foy, President & CEO of Safran Seats. “This new business class seat represents a step-change in comfort, versatility, and innovative design for the Boeing 787-9. By combining our engineering expertise with ANA’s commitment to passenger excellence and Acumen’s creative vision, we are setting new benchmarks in the world of premium air travel.”
These seats do not recline, much like the ones seen on Finnair. Here are some quick numbers and dimensions:
- 1-2-1 configuration
- Max length: 76.5 inches/194cm
- Max width: 41.5 inches/105cm
- 24-inch, HD IFE screen
Designed and delivered in partnership with Acuman and Safran, the airline had to figure out ways to fit the preexisting THE Room concept in the smaller Boeing 787 fuselage. According to PaxEx.Aero, ANA initially considered a simple, smaller version of the same THE Room product currently on the 777. Although it would’ve fit, they ultimately went with this new THE Room FX seat after seeing challenges and compromises in design.
These seats will follow the industry trend and offer wireless charging, in addition to USB-A and USB-C charging. Bluetooth pairing will also be available for the seat’s 24-inch monitor.
These seats do not recline. Instead, the airline describes that the backrest transforms into a sofa-like configuration, “…allowing passengers to relax in a variety of positions similar to lounging on a living room sofa.”
ANA also adds that THE Room FX seats have thinner walls, doors, and backrests compared to the ones on the 777, in order to make the overall weight of these seats comparable to the current 787.
This new configuration on the 787-9 will have 48 THE Room FX seats with a total of 206 seats. The current high J configuration on this aircraft has 215 seats; ANA will be removing one row of economy class as a compromise.
Overall, THE Room FX should be an improvement over the current, decade-old business class seats on the 787s. This will allow the airline to offer a more consistent product across their fleet, but we’ll have to wait until next year for the retrofit to begin. I’m also interested to hear the customer feedback on the non-recline seats once these take air.
All photos via All Nippon Airways.
