Dubai Air Show Gallery: Emirates debuts new 777 first-class cabin

The entrance foyer to Emirates' new Boeing 777-300ER first-class cabin contains this striking illuminated representation of a Ghaf tree, a species of evergreen indigenous to the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Oman that can survive long-term drought conditions.

The 777-300ER has six, fully-enclosed first-class suites with full-length sliding doors. Each has around 40 sq. ft. and, together, take up the same amount of "real estate" on the aircraft as eight first-class positions in the current fleet. 

Seats in the first-class cabins recline into lie-flat beds. Much of the initial design work for the new first-class suites was carried out by Mercedes-Benz, with Emirates president Tim Clark intimating that there was likely to be an ongoing connection with the German car manufacturer.

Tables in the suites can be laid with traditional napery for dining. The capacity of Emirates' already extensive IFE system will be doubled in the new cabins, to around 5,000 films, programs and games. Tim Clark declined to give a costing for the project, beyond describing it as "an awful lot of money."

The six suites are in a 1-1-1 configuration. The center suites, which have no natural daylight, instead have a row of "virtual windows," onto which is projected high-definition imagery of the aircraft's surroundings from cameras built-in to the airframe.

A close-up of the virtual windows, which display camera views of the outside world to passengers in the central row of suites.

Each first-class suite will have its own minibar.

Controls for suite amenities are built in to the armrests.

The business-class cabins of the 777 fleet will also be given a makeover, with that on the -300ER described by Tim Clark as a pilot project for Emirates' forthcoming 777Xs. New wood tones are prominent. Business cabin capacity will remain at 42 seats, in a 2-3-2 configuration. Seat pitch is 72 in., with the seats converting to 78 in. lie-flat beds. Each will have a 23 in. high-definition LCD screen.

A close-up of the outboard pair of seats in the revamped business-class cabin, which has a 2-3-2 layout.