HAMBURG — US-based ultra-low-cost carrier Frontier Airlines’ pivot to try to secure more of the premium market in offering a recliner-style front row is to feature Italian seatmaker Geven’s Comoda product, the companies announced at a press conference at this year’s Aircraft Interiors Expo.

It’s a big change for Frontier, but an even bigger order for Geven in the recliner space — covering US domestic first, narrowbody business elsewhere in the world, and international premium economy — where the seatmaker’s previous market presence was largely around smaller fleets like Icelandair, South African Airways, and Uganda Airlines.

Frontier’s vice president for inflight experience Gilles Bussutil tells Runway Girl Network that, “following a review of several leading seat manufacturers, Frontier selected the Geven Comoda seat as it is best aligned with our overall selection criteria. We believe the Geven Comoda will provide our passengers with a premium experience and we are excited to roll them out across our fleet.”

Indeed, that fleet is sizeable: eight seats per aircraft across a fleet of more than 160 aircraft currently operating, with roughly the same number of A320neo family orders planned to the end of this decade, although there is flexibility in terms of eventual aircraft allocation given parent company Indigo Partners’ portfolio of five airlines.

Pasquale Rapullini, Geven’s sales and business development manager, tells RGN that “the Comoda seat featured in this program represents the latest evolution of the platform, seamlessly blending enhanced comfort, operational efficiency, and refined aesthetics. Structural upgrades ensure reduced weight and increased durability, while a comprehensive, tailor-made study of colours, materials, and finishes was carried out in close collaboration with the airline.”

In terms of design, trim and finish, Frontier’s Bussutil notes that the airline is “working closely with several partners to ensure we design a seat that offers comfort and an upgraded look and feel, as well as a design that reflects our current brand transformation and desired experience for our guests.”
 

The programme will be fleetwide, both on the 160-plus currently operating aircraft and those to be delivered, although neither partner would be drawn on the potential impact of the volatility of US tariff threats currently menacing global aviation.

“This program covers both linefit and retrofit installations, ensuring fleet-wide consistency and delivering a seamless passenger experience across both new deliveries and existing aircraft,” Rapullini says. “Linefit installations will be carried out by Airbus at their designated final assembly lines, while retrofit operations will be coordinated in collaboration with MRO [maintenance, repair and overhaul] partners selected by the airline.”

Frontier’s vice president for inflight experience Gilles Bussutil adds that “final assembly line allocation is undertaken by Airbus and all lines are capable of installing seats. Frontier is working with Airbus to determine an optimal cut in process.” 

The cut in point is where the airframer’s assembly line stops producing aircraft with the old configuration and begins to produce them with the new configuration. In stable economic times with reasonable tariffs and adequate predictability, linefit installation has been widely preferred to having aircraft delivered “green” without interiors installed (or with some but not all of the interiors package) — although, of note, Geven has a history of delivering seats directly to longterm customer Icelandair to install in new (or second-hand) aircraft.

Frontier’s move to add premium seats — both with this new first class and with the UpFront Plus middle-seat-free, seat-only upgrade option that will remain in the forward section of the aircraft — comes in the context of uncertainty on the demand horizon at the cheaper end of the US market. While the “revenge travel” trend post-shutdown has now settled, economic uncertainty is something of a hemline index for aviation: when market sentiment plummets, customers reach for low-cost travel. Will comfortable seats, priced keenly, attract travellers who otherwise might be flying Delta or United?

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Featured image credited to Geven