Air France‘s regional subsidiary HOP! officially launched flights on its first refreshed E190 fleet this week*, bringing new inflight internet online and new seats into service. This is the first Air France plane to be fitted with Starlink’s inflight Wi-Fi service and the first fly with the Expliseat TiSeat 2X.
Starlink flies at Air France
Air France announced plans for a fleet-wide Starlink fitting in September 2024. This first aircraft (F-HBLV) entered service just under a year later. This is the first connectivity for the carrier’s regional jet fleet.
Air France expects the full E190 retrofit program to complete by Summer 2026. Other aircraft types will also see Starlink retrofits begin in the months ahead, displacing installations from Viasat (Inmarsat GX) Intelsat, Panasonic Avionics, and Anuvu.
Lightweight seats from Expliseat
The new seat was also announced in 2024, bringing a French seat manufacturer into the fold. At the time the companies expected significant weight savings. With the certification and entry into service the 30% weight reduction is confirmed. This is achieved thanks to titanium and carbon fiber composite construction. The seats also include USB-A and USB-C power points, a PED holder, and an adjustable headrest, demonstrating that weight savings need not remove passenger amenities from the cabin.
The new cabin layout also adds 10 seats, bringing the total capacity of the aircraft to 110.
Expliseat also highlights the recycled and recyclable components of the seat manufacturing, improving durability, reducing direct maintenance costs, and helping to further promote a circular economy of components on board.
*The aircraft’s flight history suggests it returned from retrofit and certification work on 25 August, operating two dozen revenue flights before the “first flight” on 1 September. It is unclear why the official first flight is noted as a week later.
A favor to ask while you're here...
Did you enjoy the content? Or learn something useful? Or generally just think this is the type of story you'd like to see more of? Consider supporting the site through a donation (any amount helps). It helps keep me independent and avoiding the credit card schlock.
Leave a Reply