May 19 2021  |  Partnerships, Collaborations & Acquisitions

​AIM Altitude delivers its 123rd ship set for Emirates A380

By Rick Lundstrom


The bar layout beckons passengers on 123 A380s

AIM Altitude has delivered the 123rd ship set of the Emirates A380 interior, including the iconic horseshoe bar, to Airbus in Hamburg. The final ship set in this series marks a 15-year milestone in the relationship between Emirates and AIM Altitude.

The A380 interior has seen several iterations over the years, with a major refresh occurring for the 100th ship set.

“This long and continuous association with Emirates is evidence that the design of the A380’s lounge bar has reached classic status whilst retaining its freshness and continuing appeal to passengers,” said Neil Taggart, Vice President & General Manager of AIM Altitude, part of AVIC Cabin Systems (ACS), in today’s release. “The synergy between design and aircraft has proved quite remarkable.”

Sir Tim Clark, President of Emirates, opened AIM Altitude’s new headquarters and interiors facility at Bournemouth Airport in 2016; a time that coincided with the celebration of the 100th ship set of the A380 interior.

Each ship set has:

  • The horseshoe-bar
  • The chiller bar that stands behind the main bar
  • Left- and right-hand sofas
  • A stand-up stowage with 55” TV screen
  • A storage unit for the cabin
  • A waterfall feature for the top of the staircase

The original design offered a choice between two types of sofa: a two-plus-two facing each other or an L-shaped sofa for three people. Originally presented to Emirates with the idea of having a matching pair of one or other of the configurations, the airline, on seeing the layout, preferred to offer its passengers one each of the two different sofa designs, creating an interesting asymmetry.

The last A380 will be delivered to Emirates out of Hamburg. AIM Altitude will continue to refresh some of the older fleet with the new style of interior that was introduced from ship set 100 onwards.

Emirates and AIM Altitude have further projects on the horizon, including a confirmed program on Emirates’ 777s and a proposed retro fit to update and refresh the A380’s older-style interior.

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