Jun 24, 2026 · 33 min · 7 segments
In this special episode of ABNcast recorded at the Passenger Experience Conference in Hamburg, ABN's Lee Hayhurst spoke to three delegates about the key trends they are seeing in the world of airline…
Lee HayhurstHost
Sarah WilkinGuestLuke Van Den AvilaGuest
Johnny ClarkGuest
Yeah, the idea of my keynote was simply that with the advancement of so many seats and cabin interiors, we're reaching a bit of a plateau now.
They offer the same seats, albeit with maybe different colors, trim and finish.
But where does an airline... find its opportunity to stand out in a pretty crowded market.
So it's the pivot and the switch to looking at sometimes those invisible forces that sometimes get overlooked.
And that's the entire passenger experience, all those little magic moments and how they all speak together as one.
You look at cars today, entry-level cars have equipment that 20, 30 years ago was considered almost sci-fi.
That has to stop or is it inevitable that it goes on and on and on and there's always going to be something new around the corner?
It's just the natural evolution of all of the products across the entire consumer industry.
So whether that's your latest iPhone or telephone or your laptop, there's always going to be another product that's coming out.
I think a lot of people now when they talk about luxury, what they're talking really about is experience.
So if you look at the hospitality industry, a lot of the very top end luxury brands are trying to create a sense of experience when they arrive in a destination.
So looking at the local cultures and bringing that to life, I think a lot of people when they're now seeking luxury experiences, they're less likely to pick purely on a nice finish or a nice room or even a nice cabin if you're an airline.
So it is the personal experience, the customer experience, isn't it, or the passenger experience? more than just the hardware.
Yeah, the idea of my keynote was simply that with the advancement of so many seats and cabin interiors, we're reaching a bit of a plateau now.
They offer the same seats, albeit with maybe different colors, trim and finish.
But where does an airline... find its opportunity to stand out in a pretty crowded market.
So it's the pivot and the switch to looking at sometimes those invisible forces that sometimes get overlooked.
And that's the entire passenger experience, all those little magic moments and how they all speak together as one.
You look at cars today, entry-level cars have equipment that 20, 30 years ago was considered almost sci-fi.
That has to stop or is it inevitable that it goes on and on and on and there's always going to be something new around the corner?
It's just the natural evolution of all of the products across the entire consumer industry.
So whether that's your latest iPhone or telephone or your laptop, there's always going to be another product that's coming out.
I think a lot of people now when they talk about luxury, what they're talking really about is experience.
So if you look at the hospitality industry, a lot of the very top end luxury brands are trying to create a sense of experience when they arrive in a destination.
So looking at the local cultures and bringing that to life, I think a lot of people when they're now seeking luxury experiences, they're less likely to pick purely on a nice finish or a nice room or even a nice cabin if you're an airline.
So it is the personal experience, the customer experience, isn't it, or the passenger experience? more than just the hardware.
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