CNN: Airplane cabin concepts that could change flying

The University of Cincinnati is among the winners of the latest Crystal Cabin Awards, which champion the most innovative and exciting ideas in airplane interiors.

A shortlist for the awards was announced back in January 2020, with the results scheduled to be revealed at the 2020 Aircraft Interiors Expo, originally set to take place in Hamburg, Germany in March 2020. When COVID-19 swept through northern Europe last spring, the events were put on hold.

The designers were finally honored at a virtual ceremony this week. While the shortlist had been chosen in a pre-pandemic climate, the winners take on a new significance in the wake of the COVID pandemic, reports CNN.

UC came up tops in the university category with a "coffee house" style design, a concept that reimagines how business travelers might work in flight.

The university previously made it to the Crystal Cabin final in 2019.

The winning Coffee House Cabin design features a long table for meetings, productive work and coffee breaks. UC adjunct professor and alumnus Alejandro Lozano Robledo developed the concept together with UC's Live Well Collaborative and Boeing.

Read more about the awards from CNN.