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Air New Zealand considered the needs of five broad types of long-haul passengers - including positivists, cocooners and territorialists - when designing the cabin layout for its new fleet of five Boeings 777-300s.
In the split between the outgoing and the introspective, about 40% of travellers described themselves as sociable when flying, Air NZ international airline group general manager Ed Sims says.
The sociable ones were divided into two groups - positivists and socialites.
Positivists were fidgety and excited, highly involved in the flight and the romance of travel, and "a fantastic person to sit next to for about half an hour", Sims says.
Using The Simpsons as a guide, he compared them to Marge.
Socialites (Bart) were also highly involved in the flight and liked to socialise with those around them.
The more reclusive characters were described as cocooners, territorialists and the disengaged.
Cocooners (Lisa) wanted to "zone out" and amuse themselves, and for them the inflight entertainment system was a perfect creation.
Territorialists (Mr Burns) were mainly frequent flyers. They knew their space entitlements and had high expectations of service.
The disengaged (Mo the Bartender) regarded flying as simply a means of getting from A to B and preferred to keep to themselves.
Sims says the design team had to create a cabin environment that catered for all five types.
"We needed to make sure we were offering options and variety in the seating that allowed us to accommodate different requirements."
Air NZ's first Boeing 777-300 is due to be delivered in November and will begin services between Auckland and Los Angeles the following month.
