The all-new Recline option of Acro Aircraft Seating’s iconic Series 9 has taken to the air this month with fast-growing carrier, Volotea, Europe’s Leading Low-Cost Airline (World Travel Awards 2024).
The Spanish independent which already connects 18 countries, and 110 European cities has become the inaugural customer for the Recline version of the soaraway success Series 9 with a 5-year contract within its Airbus narrow body fleet (A319/A320). This year, Volotea will incorporate this new seat model into up to 5 aircraft in its fleet, with plans to complete the transition by 2028.
The handsome new S9R features a reclining seatback up to 9 degrees and Volotea’s bespoke version is finished with sumptuous vegan leather covers with subtle colour accents on the headrests that blend Volotea’s distinctive Vichy pattern with other corporate colours, customised high level literature stowage and a lower bungee pocket.
Announcing the contract, Neil Cairns, CEO of Acro, said, “The Series 9 has proved a real hero for airlines seeking to achieve low weight and highly competitive costs while delivering exceptional passenger comfort or visual appeal. It famously optimises passenger living space, even in high density cabins, while its pared down elegance delivers not only stunning appearance but also reduced part count to support low maintenance and fast turnaround. The Recline version just takes things to another level and demonstrates that, occasionally, you really can have it all!
“The class-leading S9R provides generous pax width and tremendous stretch-all-you-like legroom without compromise to either armrest or aisle width.
“We have worked with Volotea since 2015 and we are delighted to have earned their continuing confidence with this latest order. When it came to creating a bespoke and new Reclining version of the Series 9 the Volotea team proved themselves to be outstandingly knowledgeable and creative partners and their input is reflected in this fabulous new seat. I know it will work just as hard as they do!”
Launching the seat, Eduard Diviu, Chief Operating Officer of Volotea said, “We are constantly working to elevate our customer experience, as demonstrated by this significant retrofit programme. The reclining Series 9 brings fresh benefits to our passengers and its contemporary elegance undoubtedly enhances the overall visual impact of the cabin. We are certain that our customers will really appreciate the enhanced personal space as well as the comfort of the new seats”.
“Our investment in the new Acro Series 9 Recline seats is a great way to celebrate 12 years of operations, during which we have carried over 60 million passengers. With these enhancements, our customers can look forward to traveling directly to their destinations in greater comfort, and we are excited to welcome even more travellers on board in the future to experience these improvements”.
About Volotea
Volotea was founded in 2011 by Carlos Muñoz and Lázaro Ros, previously founders of Vueling. It is one of the fastest growing independent airlines in Europe over the past 10 years. Year after year, it has seen its fleet grow, the number of routes it operates and the number of seats it offers for sale. This year, the airline celebrated the milestone of 60 million passengers carried.
Volotea flies to more than 110 airports and has bases in 21 medium-sized European cities: Asturias, Athens, Bari (new 2024) Bilbao, Bordeaux, Brest (new 2024), Cagliari, Florence (since April 2023), Hamburg, Lille, Lyon, Lourdes, Marseille, Nantes, Naples, Olbia, Palermo, Strasbourg, Toulouse, Venice and Verona.
In 2024, Volotea will operate more than 450 routes (more than half of which will be exclusive), offer between 12.5 and 13 million seats (12 percent to 16 percent more than in 2023), and operate about 80,000 flights. The airline has also expanded its fleet and will operate 44 Airbus A319s and A320s.
All images credited to Acro/Volotea
