EXCLUSIVE: Inside Elie Saab and Bombardier’s ‘Couture Aviation’ Jet Cabin

MILAN — Together, Bombardier and fashion and lifestyle brand Elie Saab have made what they call “couture aviation.”

At an event Friday in Monaco, the two unveiled their passenger cabin design for Bombardier’s Global 8000 aircraft, the firm told WWD.

In images previewed by WWD, interiors included plush furnishings, designed with a nature-inspired motif featuring birds in flight and awash in a calming, natural color palette. The unveiling took place at Bombardier’s Aviator Lounge, the company’s mmersive flagship in Monaco during the Formula 1 Grand Prix.

Available as an option for Global 8000 customers, the cabin extends Elie Saab’s design universe into aviation and reinforces its ambition to accompany clients in every aspect of life, including in flight.

The Global 8000 itself has been pivotal for the aviation industry. It’s “the world’s fastest civilian aircraft since Concorde,” said Bombardier, adding that the long-range jet travels at a top speed of Mach 0.95. In aviation, mach represents the ratio of an aircraft’s true airspeed to the local speed of sound. Global 8000 also contains four spaces including the Club Suite, Conference Suite, Entertainment Suite and the Principal Suite, in addition to the industry’s largest kitchen and a furnished bathroom.

For Elie Saab chief executive officer Elie Saab Jr., the project was a way to extend the brand’s lifestyle to the aviation experience.

“With Bombardier, we approached this collaboration with an haute couture mindset, elevating every material and detail into a carefully curated expression of luxury, precision and design excellence. This project also reflects our desire to accompany our clients in their daily lives wherever they are, extending the Elie Saab universe into every moment of their journey,” he said in a statement.

When the partnership was first revealed in November 2025, it marked Bombardier’s first design collaboration with a luxury fashion house such as Elie Saab. Customers of the Global 8000 will have the opportunity to select the Elie Saab design, a statement of elegance and refinement, the firms said. Bombardier president and chief executive officer Éric Martel said the collaboration pushed boundaries.

“This allowed us to go beyond concepts and rethink the cabin as a true living space, while fully respecting the performance and operational realities of the aircraft,” he said.

Elie Saab Redefining Travel and Living

Elie Saab has been on a roll, on and off the runway. The firm, which was founded in Lebanon in 1982, has been an active player in the branded residences sphere and interiors. Its plunge into the aviation industry is a pivotal step.

In December, the fashion house revealed its first branded hotel in the Swiss Alps. In July, Elie Saab said it was bringing the world of its home division to the sea with the launch of its inaugural yacht project.

The brand has collaborated with Maiora, a historic Italian shipyard founded in the 1970s and controlled by Next Yacht Group. The two parties unveiled the project for the 42 Exuma yacht in Viareggio, a Tuscan resort destination that is a 20-minute drive from Forte dei Marmi.