Qatar Airways has unveiled a unique new business class product that allows passengers to merge their seats.

The new QSuite was revealed to the travel trade today (8 March 2017), on the opening day of ITB Berlin. It features a series of note-worthy components, including the first-ever business class double bed and retractable privacy panels.

These allow passengers to merge their suites, and groups of up to four passengers travelling together in the centre seats can remove the panels to create a large private suite, enabling them to work, dine and socialise together.

The new design was unveiled by Qatar Airways’ group chief executive, Akbar Al Baker, in the presence of HE Sheikh Saoud Bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, Qatar’s Ambassador to Germany, and Michael Müller, the Mayor of Berlin.

“Today I am proud to unveil the future of premium travel with our new QSuite business class,” said Al Baker. “Our unique and patented design is a world first in many ways and challenges industry norms by offering passengers more privacy, more choice and more personalisation.

“With these innovations, Qatar Airways has revolutionised the way we serve our business class travellers, enabling our passengers to enjoy a first class experience in business class. You choose when you rest, and when you want entertainment; we offer more choices than any other airline. It only makes sense to give you the choice to make your own cabin-within-a-cabin, creating double QSuites or quadrants,” he added.

Other features of the QSuite include ‘Do Not Disturb’ signs to ensure privacy, new amenity kits from The White Company, and a new user interface for the Oryx One in-flight entertainment system. A new F&B concept is also being introduced, including a selection of sharing dishes that are available throughout the flight, in line with the social seating concept.

The new QSuite will start being fitted to the existing Qatar Airways fleet from June 2017, at an estimated rate of one aircraft a month.