Dragonair Boosts Passenger Experience with New First Class Seat and other Inflight Products

Dragonair today unveiled its brand-new First Class seat together with a range of inflight products that will further enhance the overall travel experience for passengers.

The product announcement was made at a media event hosted by Dragonair Chief Executive Officer Patrick Yeung. Speaking at the event, Mr Yeung said: "At Dragonair, we look at every single detail of what we offer our passengers in order to examine how to better meet their needs. We strive to provide the best - from the quality of the seats and other product details to the food we serve inflight. We are very excited about the latest product developments we are announcing today."

Earlier this year, Dragonair announced a comprehensive upgrade in its cabins, with new Business Class and Economy Class seats and a new inflight entertainment system, Studio^KA, providing full audio and video on demand in all classes.

Dragonair Chief Executive Officer Patrick Yeung said: "With the rollout of our new First Class, we can ensure that the journeys of all passengers, in all classes of travel, are even more relaxing and enjoyable. This overhaul of our inflight offering demonstrates our commitment to offer superior products and services to our passengers, and also underlines Dragonair's commitment to long-term expansion and development."

Dragonair's new First Class seat is a passenger-led design that aims to refine comfort, versatility and function. Every aspect of the new product has been thoughtfully designed around the passenger's needs.

Inflight shopping has become another integral part of the overall passenger experience, and at today's event Dragonair unveiled a new line-up of items for sale in the first quarter of 2014. The full range of more than 350 products, with over 140 new items and a number of Dragonair-exclusive items as well as a selection of products from social enterprises, will be available for sale in the January-March issue of emporium, the airline's inflight shopping magazine.

Mr Yeung said: "Passenger tastes and lifestyles have changed in recent years and inflight sales is now about much more than duty-free shopping. At Dragonair we have been working hard to enhance the inflight shopping experience in recent years, moving from simply selling duty-free alcohol or perfumes to offering passengers a more sophisticated shopping experience with an ever-increasing choice. We also want to highlight our commitment to the community, and in the upcoming season we will support new Hong Kong social enterprises by selling their products onboard. We hope that while enjoying their inflight shopping, passengers join us to give something to the community."

At today's media event, Dragonair also showcased its latest seasonal inflight menu which features a variety of Chinese-style hot pot rice dishes. Offering a healthy alternative for passengers, this season's hot pot rice dishes feature fungi, including a variety of mushrooms, as the key ingredients and consist of six brand new dishes in First Class and six in Business Class on flights from Hong Kong to Beijing and Shanghai.

The airline's inflight food menus are always well received among passengers. Earlier this year, Dragonair invited passengers to vote for their favourite Asian and Western dishes in different classes through a social media campaign. Over a six-week period the airline's dedicated social media sites received more than a million views. The 36 dishes that received the most votes from fans are now being served on selected routes until mid-April 2014.

Please see the following Appendixes for more details:
1. Dragonair's New First Class
2. Dragonair's New Inflight Sales Items (First quarter 2014)
3. Dragonair's New Seasonal Menu - Steamed Rice in Hot Pot Casserole Menu
4. Dragonair's Most Voted Signature Inflight Menu

Dragonair Chief Executive Officer Patrick Yeung introduces the New First Class product at a
media event today.

Dragonair's new First Class seat is a passenger-led design that aims to refine comfort, versatility
and function. Every aspect of the new product has been thoughtfully designed around
the passenger's needs.

The airline unveiled a new line-up of inflight sales items for the first quarter of 2014 with a full
range of more than 350 products.

Dragonair Chief Executive Officer Patrick Yeung (middle right), General Manager Inflight Services
Andy Wong (middle left) introduce the new inflight menu.

Dragonair, an affiliate member of oneworld, is a Hong Kong-based airline operating a fleet of 41 passenger aircraft and serving 46 regional destinations, including 22 cities in Mainland China. Dragonair has been recognised for its product and service quality, and has been named the "Best Regional Airline" at the TTG Travel Awards for four consecutive years since 2010, and voted "World's Best Regional Airline" in the annual Skytrax World Airline Awards? in 2010, 2011 and 2013. Dragonair is part of the Cathay Pacific Group, providing seamless connectivity for passengers to more than 170 cities around the globe.

Dragonair web site address: www.dragonair.com

Appendix 1:

Dragonair's New First Class

In order to further differentiate its product and maintain standards of excellence, Dragonair has developed a new First Class product for its three-class Airbus A330-300 aircraft. The aim is to enhance the overall First Class passenger experience, providing passengers a space in which to sleep, dine, work, read, watch TV or simply relax. The new First Class product will be installed on Dragonair's three-class A330-300s, with the first due to enter service in the late first quarter of 2014.

The New First Class Cabin
As passengers enter the cabin, they immediately appreciate the sense of space and openness. Clean, sculpted lines define private seats with direct aisle access. Warm-tone natural leather is used on most interior surfaces of the seat for a luxurious feel and soft touch. Abstract patterns, richly woven fabrics and original artwork harmonise to create a warm, premium residential feel.

Storage Space
The instant a passenger steps into their private area, they notice the generous space available in the Side Storage, which is sufficient for handbags or laptop cases.

A Side Cabinet and a Shoe Locker provide storage for small valuables and personal belongings. A Vanity Mirror is concealed under a flap inside the Side Cabinet door. During the flight the Side Cabinet can be fixed in the open position to double as a privacy screen.

Living Space
Settling into the contemporary wing-back chair, passengers are cocooned in their own private area which has been sculpted to maximise living space. Individual privacy is assured without compromising freedom of movement.

Direct Window View
The outboard seats are gently angled towards the windows, giving passengers a perfect view.

Seat Controls
Everything passengers need to control their environment is close at hand. The Entertainment Handset operates a widescreen on-demand entertainment system. A premium-car-style Seat Controller enables passengers to adjust their seat at the touch of a button - from upright, through the relax position and into a fully flat bed.

The Bed
A long, wide bed allows passengers to sleep in any position. The foams have been ergonomically designed to optimise comfort for sitting, relaxing or sleeping.

A novel feature called the Bed Extension deploys automatically as the seat transforms into a bed, increasing the bed width. The Retractable Armrest can be lowered to further increase sleeping space or raised to act as a privacy screen.

Companion Travel
The centre seats are gently angled towards each other, making them perfect for those travelling with a companion. When a passenger is reclined into the seat with the screen deployed, privacy is assured. However at the touch of a button the seat slides forward, allowing passengers to interact with their travel companions over a central Cocktail Table.

Work and Entertainment Features

The large Cocktail Table can be used in conjunction with the main table to allow passengers to spread out while they work. A Reading Light can be adjusted for brightness and angle.

Dragonair's entertainment is now upgraded to an Audio Video on Demand (AVOD) system to allow passengers to select their own choice of movies and music during the flight.

Each seat is equipped with a universal Power Supply outlet to keep electronic devices fully charged. A Multi-port Connector includes an RCA port, an iPhone/iPod connector and a USB port. The RCA and the iPhone/iPod connector allow passengers to connect their own devices and watch video through the Personal TV. The USB port can be used to charge devices such as mobile phones and tablet devices.

Comparison between current First Class and new First Class

Appendix 2:

Dragonair's New Inflight Sales Items (First quarter 2014)

Dragonair's inflight shopping features an amazing variety of products that cater for passengers' needs in different ways. To make shopping even easier, the airline already provides home delivery services in Hong Kong, Mainland China, Japan, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan.

a. Some of the new Dragonair-exclusive items:

b. Some of the new Home Delivery items:

c. Some of the Social Enterprises and Charitable items:

Love + Hope
L Plus H's products are all 100% made in Hong Kong by workers who lost their jobs because of factory relocations to Mainland China during the 1980s. The brand aims to help these workers regain their confidence and attain skills that reach an international standard.

rwb330
Produced by New Life Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association, the Bearwhiteblue product series reflects Hong Kong culture with the classic carry-bag colours. rwb330, featuring designs that use the classic red, white and blue fabric of Hong Kong carry bags, is a social enterprise that aims to provide work and training to people recovering from mental illness.

d. Some of the Best Selling items:

Appendix 3:

Dragonair's New Seasonal Menu - Steamed Rice in Hot Pot Casserole

Dragonair's seasonal menus consider the dining enjoyment of passengers in different seasons of the year, including poon choi in spring, winter melon soup in summer and crab roe dishes in the autumn.

The latest hot pot rice dishes feature various types of fungi, including mushrooms. A wide selection of premium mushrooms has been incorporated into the new dishes to bring a healthy element into this Hong Kong delicacy. Some of the fungi and mushrooms are prized for their ability to help the body maintain warmth and strength during the winter season, while others can help to lower cholesterol levels and control blood pressure.

a. First Class (Available on flights from Hong Kong to Beijing and Shanghai from 16 December 2013 to 31 March 2014)

b. Business Class (Available on flights from Hong Kong to Beijing and Shanghai from 1 November 2013 to 31 January 2014)

Appendix 4:

Dragonair's Most Voted Signature Inflight Menu

Among the dishes voted for through Dragonair's social media channels, it was found that those with richer flavours such as sweet and sour sauce, abalone sauce and satay were the most well-liked. This may be due to the fact that human taste buds are not as sensitive in the air as they are on the ground. Amongst the winning dishes in each category, seafood and fish dishes were more popular among passengers. Amongst various Asian cuisines, Chinese came out on top while Japanese food was another clear favourite among passengers.

a. First Class (Available on flights from Hong Kong to Beijing and Shanghai from 1 October 2013 to 15 April 2014)

Asian dishes
No. 1: Prawn stuffed with crab and prawn mousse in abalone sauce
No. 2: Prawn and asparagus skewer in abalone crab roe sauce
No. 3: Steamed scallop with prawn mousse in crab meat and egg white sauce
No. 4: Pan-fried cod fish in teriyaki sauce
No. 5: Braised Beef tenderloin with garlic and spring onion in ginger sauce
No. 6: Beef and goose liver roll in Chinese roasting sauce

Western dishes
No. 1: Grilled seafood (cod fish, salmon, prawn and scallop) bouillabaisse style with spinach risotto
No. 2: Grilled Angus beef steak with cognac blue cheese butter and pepper sauce, lyonnaise potato and Mediterranean vegetables
No. 3: Cod fish wrapped with prosciutto and asparagus, lyonnaise potato
No. 4: Grilled beef tenderloin in porcini mushroom sauce, gratin potato and braised endive
No. 5: Chicken breast stuffed with ricotta and spinach, pan-fried foie gras and saffron tagliarini pasta
No. 6: Mango and pine nut crusted chicken breast with potato gnocchi

b. Business Class (Available on flights from Hong Kong to Beijing and Shanghai from 1 October 2013 to 15 April 2014)

Asian dishes
No. 1: Braised beef shank and prawn in sweet and sour sauce
No. 2: Taiwan style three cup chicken with bamboo shoot
No. 3: Roasted seafood (scallop, fish and prawn) skewer with satay sauce in Indonesian style
No. 4: Sauteeed beef fillet with macadamia nut and mushrooms
No. 5: Prawn cakes with green curry sauce in Thai Style
No. 6: Braised pork loin in five spice soya sauce

Western dishes
No. 1: Grilled sole fillet with lobster sauce, Parisienne potato
No. 2: Pine nut mango crusted beef tenderloin with port wine sauce, mashed potato
No. 3: Grilled beef tenderloin with rosemary mustard sauce, orecchiette pasta
No. 4: Grilled cod fish with saffron fish broth, capellini pasta
No. 5: Pan-fried pork cutlet with morel porcini sauce, fettuccine pasta
No. 6: Seafood skewer (salmon, sole and prawn) with dill cream sauce, squid risotto

c. Economy Class (Available on flights from Hong Kong to Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Qingdao, Kunming and Ningbo from 1 October 2013 to 15 April 2014)

Asian dishes
No. 1: Chicken thigh with teriyaki sauce
No. 2: Sauteed chicken with hoisin sauce
No. 3/4: Sauteed beef with mushroom and gingko nut in teriyaki sauce / Braised beef brisket and tendon with turnip
No. 5: Chicken with pineapple in sweet and sour sauce
No. 6: Steamed sole fillet with yellow bean paste

Western dishes
No. 1: Chicken thigh with tomato raisin compote, green fettuccine
No. 2: Braised beef with B.B.Q. cream sauce, mashed potato with pumpkin
No. 3: Hungarian beef goulash, linguine pasta
No. 4/5: Pork and carrot stew with rosemary, roasted potato / Seafood (shrimp, squid, sole) in tomato concasse, orecchiette pasta
No. 6: Steamed basa cafe de Paris butter, angel hair pasta