During the media briefing at the Airbus headquarters on July 13, The Manila Times noted from the press handouts that there was more than one reason to celebrate the delivery of Philippine Airlines first A350-900 XWB.
Daniel Baron (right photo), owner of the company which designed interiors of the A350, tweets the answer to The Manila Times’ question
To quote from the information sheet, “Airbus’s relationship with the Philippines is long-standing. It dates back to the manufacturer’s early days, when in 1978 PAL placed an initial order for the original A300B4 – the world’s first widebody twinjet airliner. Affectionately dubbed the “Lovebus” by PAL, the first aircraft arrived in Manila in 1979, marking the start of an extremely successful partnership between the European manufacturer and the Philippines.”
And so during the Q&A, The Times pointed out and asked, “It turns out that the A350 delivery coincides with the 40th year of PAL and Airbus’ business relationship. Given that you dubbed that first acquisition the ‘Lovebus,’ what nickname would you give PAL’s first A350?”
A loud murmur started to spread across the flag carrier’s executives on the front rows, eventually reaching Daniel Baron, the American owner of Lift Strategic Design, which PAL commissioned to take charge of the overall look of the airline cabin and customer journey development. Just before the question, he described with enthusiasm how he incorporated Filipino touches into the very modern airline interiors with such painstaking details as the PAL A350’s barong Tagalog-inspired wallpaper and Mindanaoan patterns on the seat covers.
Moreover, in choosing the mood lighting colors overhead, he made sure the festive shades of banderitas hung around the barrio at fiesta time are included. [He even designed a light show that debuted on the ferry flight to the group’s delight].
“Hmm…you’ve pushed us against a wall,” Baron told The Manila Times, delightfully amused. “Give me until tomorrow’s ferry flight and I’ll have the answer for you.”
Clad in his very own polo barong for the A350’s journey home to Manila, he announced, “I have the nickname!”
“You know, everything about the design of this plane is inspired by my favorite character of the Filipino, and that is their warmth. So the idea with all of these Filipino touches, the lighting, is for passengers, especially the Filipinos to be embraced by your country’s warmth. Given all that, the perfect nickname for PAL’s A350 is ‘Xtra Love’.”
Mabuhay ka, Daniel Baron.
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