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As per this image of the A350, the crew rest areas have been placed on the top of the fuselage. How can this be possible and how would the crew get into the rear one since it seems that it is placed above first class?

I understand that the front one is accessible from the cockpit, but the second one seems to be straight on top the first/business class section. Is this actually practical?

A350 diagram showing location of crew rest areas

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    $\begingroup$ There might be a passage between rest areas? $\endgroup$ May 7, 2016 at 17:11
  • $\begingroup$ This isn't new. The 777 has been this way for many years and the 787 is designed this way, too. Single-deck wide-body aircraft have a rather large amount of space above the passenger cabin if the fuselage has a roughly circular cross-section. $\endgroup$
    – reirab
    May 7, 2016 at 19:27

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It looks like your image came from this article, since they have the exact same one.

According to Boeing, this is the most practical place, and Airbus has finally decided they agree.

For the first time in Airbus aircraft –and after benchmarked[sic] Boeing´s configuration-, the A350 XWB’s crew rest compartments are in the aircraft crown.
--All images and quotes from article linked above unless otherwise noted.

This image shows that the cabin crew's rest area is at the rear of the aircraft, while the flight crew's is up front. It also shows how they've shifted out of the basement and into the attic:

A350XWB Crew Rest Compartments
Image courteously, but unknowingly supplied by core77.com

Further down in that article they state why the crew rest areas are where they are:

The A350 XWB crew rests, located overhead in the crown area, have no impact on revenues space – whether cargo or passenger – and contribute to the efficiency of the A350 XWB cabin.

It also explains how you get there:

Entrances to these rest areas are located outside the passenger cabin, so they do not use up seat space. “This is the first time a crew rest area on an aircraft will have no revenue-generating impact,” A350 XWB Marketing Director Bausor said.

Unfortunately, I'm guessing that the crew rest areas do not actually have a skylight one might infer from this image:

https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zNGGryN1Z74/UIw3VmcvzAI/AAAAAAAAAZs/TSbdBkytuR8/s320/cabinrest1.jpg

I'm sure the day-shift crew would enjoy sleeping under the stars at night, though the night-shift crew probably wouldn't enjoy the bright sunlight while trying to sleep.

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    $\begingroup$ +1, but it might be good to explicitly mention that the second rest area is actually in the tail and not above the forward part of the passenger cabin as the picture in the question shows. This makes it more obvious how this doesn't waste revenue space in the passenger cabin. $\endgroup$
    – reirab
    May 7, 2016 at 19:27
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    $\begingroup$ @pcfreakxx yes, well, sadly, that's why they recommend hosting the image at imgur - in case the original goes offline. I'll see what I can do to remember what it was supposed to be and find a replacement. $\endgroup$
    – FreeMan
    Mar 27, 2017 at 14:32
  • $\begingroup$ @pcfreakxx actually, it's SE's new requirement that image links use HTTPS and the fact that the original image host doesn't have a properly configured certificate. I believe I've reinserted the original image, but the linked article (in the image credit) will take you to a nice article and several other images. $\endgroup$
    – FreeMan
    Mar 27, 2017 at 14:38
  • $\begingroup$ So what is in the other 'attic areas' that are not a rest area? $\endgroup$
    – KPK
    Jun 28, 2022 at 3:03
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    $\begingroup$ That's a great question, @KPK, and you should feel free to ask it! $\endgroup$
    – FreeMan
    Jun 28, 2022 at 11:35

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