Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
10/18/2016 Skinnier Seats on More Crowded Planes WSJ
http://www.wsj.com/articles/skinnierseatsonmorecrowdedplanes1414602406 1/5
Skinny is all the rage on the runway right now.
Delta, United, American, Southwest and other airlines around the world have installedseats with trim metal frames and ultrathin cushions, squeezing rows closer together topack more people on each flight. Three-quarters of Delta’s domestic fleet and one-quarter of United’s now have the new slim-line seating.
The lightweight seats—and even some new,skinnier bathrooms—improve airlines’bottom line, with less fuel burned perpassenger and more tickets sold per flight.But passengers can feel the pinch: Somecomplain about stiff padding and knee-knocking issues, and liken flying in the newseat to squeezing next to strangers on a
crowded park bench.
Putting the squeeze on seat pitch used to be only for ultracheap and charter operators.It’s becoming more widespread now and getting worse.
Each row of coach seats used to have 32 or 33 inches of space front to back for a seatedpassenger between seat backs—a measurement the airline industry calls seat pitch. But
This copy is for your personal, noncommercial use only. To order presentationready copies for distribution to your colleagues, clients or customers visithttp://www.djreprints.com.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/skinnierseatsonmorecrowdedplanes1414602406
THE MIDDLE SEAT
Skinnier Seats on More CrowdedPlanesSlimmed-Down Seating Can Feel More Like a Park Bench, Especially on Longer Flights
Updated Oct. 29, 2014 6:11 p.m. ET
By
SCOTT MCCARTNEY
WSJ RadioScott McCartney joins WSJ This Morning'sGordon Deal to discuss skinnier seats onairplanes.
00:00 |10:45
10/18/2016 Skinnier Seats on More Crowded Planes WSJ
http://www.wsj.com/articles/skinnierseatsonmorecrowdedplanes1414602406 2/5
now many big airlines are down to 31 inches of seat pitch. United goes as tight as 30inches on some of its Boeing 737s.
And at some airlines, it’s going to get worse. In September, Boeing announced the launchof new, denser seating on 737s called 737 MAX 200, aimed at low-cost airlines. The newMAX 200 version will be built with additional emergency exits and fitted with 200 seats.The current version of the same plane typically has 160 seats and is capped at amaximum 189 for safety reasons. Seat pitch on the new version will be as tight as 28inches, the company says.
But with thinner materials, new seat designs are “giving passengers more leg room thanthe previous generation of seat designs’’ and making high-density planes possible, aBoeing spokeswoman says.
Regulators deal with seat space in tests of safety, not comfort. When planes are certified,manufacturers set a seating limit and are required to demonstrate that the maximumnumber of people can make an emergency evacuation within time limits. That limitshow tightly rows can be pushed together. In Europe, the European Aviation SafetyAgency says the distance from the seat to the back of the seat in front has to be at least66 centimeters, or about 26 inches, equal to a seat pitch of about 28 inches.
More rows result in more passengers competing for limited space in overhead bins. Andtighter confines make the cabin feel more crowded or even more claustrophobic. Somepassengers complain about sardine-can conditions in coach and opt to pay added feesfor extra legroom or even first-class upgrades. One version of United’s reconfigured 737-800 has 54 Economy Plus seats, available for an extra fee, and 96 regular economy seats.An older reconfiguration had 18 Economy Plus and 114 regular economy seats.
Seat manufacturer Recaro says a reconfigured seatback pocket and tray table will create extra knee space forpassengers. RECARO
10/18/2016 Skinnier Seats on More Crowded Planes WSJ
http://www.wsj.com/articles/skinnierseatsonmorecrowdedplanes1414602406 3/5
On a recent United flight fromWest Palm Beach, Fla., toNewark, N.J., frequent flierSteve Landes fidgetednervously and even worriedabout the Ebola virus as theman seated next to himsneezed continuously.“Putting you closer to yourneighbor does increase thethreat of germs if the persondoes have a cold,” Mr. Landessays.
A survey by TripAdvisor of1,391 travelers who had tried
the new seats found 83% said they were less comfortable than traditional seats. EvenSen. John McCain has complained, tweeting in January during a Phoenix-to-Washington trip, “Are you as frustrated as I am that the airlines keep moving the rows ofseats closer and closer together?”
United began installing slim-line seats in 2013. Recent changes include slim-linelavatories in 737-900s and an extra row of those more-slender seats. A plane that beganflying for Continental Airlines with 167 seats has steadily crept up in seat count and nowhas 179 seats.
United uses different seat manufacturers for different types of aircraft, but a commonlyused seat is the Recaro BL3520, a standard coach seat that has won industry designawards and is also used by Lufthansa, Alaska and many other airlines. Three seatstogether weigh just over 24 pounds per passenger, or 30% less than comparabletraditional models, Recaro says. The seat also maximizes knee space by moving the seat-back pocket above the tray table. A newer version with an even-slimmer backrest isalmost 2 pounds per passenger lighter and adds more knee room.
United has shrunk to 30 inches of seat pitch in economy with slim seats on Airbus A319and A320 jets, in part with that seat-back pocket change. Along with the narrowerbackrest, that creates an additional 1.8 inches of knee room for passengers, United says.Even with rows reduced 1 inch, passengers get more space. “The frame of the seat is thatmuch narrower,” spokesman Rahsaan Johnson says.
10/18/2016 Skinnier Seats on More Crowded Planes WSJ
http://www.wsj.com/articles/skinnierseatsonmorecrowdedplanes1414602406 4/5
United customer surveys show lower scores for new slim seats in both Airbus andBoeing planes. But once the leather in the seats gets broken in and loosens up after 12weeks or more, Mr. Johnson says, “the net satisfaction score is basically the same.”
One seat that definitely scores lower: exit-row seats on Airbus A319 and A320 planes.Although the new Recaro seats United installed have a flexible diaphragm for the seatbottom, the Federal Aviation Administration requires hard seat-bottoms on exit-rowseats that people could stand on in an emergency.
United, Delta and others say other coach improvements such as video on-demand andWi-Fi help compensate for tighter seating. “Seats need to be comfortable. But otheraspects are important, too, including entertainment, appearance and service,” says MikeHenny, Delta’s director of customer experience.
Delta, which has about three-quarters of its fleet equipped with skinny seats, says it iscontinuing to test passenger comfort with the new seats and found that ones withflexible seat bottoms are more comfortable. With future purchases, the airline maymove to greater preference for flexible seat bottoms, Mr. Henny says.
American, still working through its merger with US Airways, says it is “playing catch-up”on slim seating. The airline only recently began retrofitting 737-800s with 160 seats, upfrom 150. The new layouts will have 31 inches of space for each economy row, but seatswill pivot on the bottom, articulating forward when a passenger reclines to provideslightly more knee space to the person behind.
Boeing 777-200s are alreadybeing expanded from 247seats up to 289 seats. One bigchange on the 777: Americanis installing 10 seats acrosseach coach row, up from nine.That shrinks the width of eachseat to 17 inches, down from 18and 18.5 inches. Emirates, AirFrance, Air Canada, Air NewZealand and others have allmade that change; Delta andUnited so far have refused,deeming 17 inches too tight
for very long trips overseas.
A look at a screen in the back of a new Recaro seat. RECARO
10/18/2016 Skinnier Seats on More Crowded Planes WSJ
http://www.wsj.com/articles/skinnierseatsonmorecrowdedplanes1414602406 5/5
American has estimated that adding more seats to planes and better matching the sizeof the aircraft to each trip flown will create about $600 million for the merged airline by2015. It says new seating will meet comfort standards.
“If people don’t like it, they won’t buy it,” a spokesman says.
Corrections & Amplifications
One-quarter of United’s domestic fleet now has the new slim-line seating. A previousversion of this story incorrectly reported that a majority of United’s domestic fleet hasthe seating.
Write to Scott McCartney at [email protected]
Copyright 2014 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved
This copy is for your personal, noncommercial use only. Distribution and use of this material are governed by our Subscriber Agreement and by copyright law.For nonpersonal use or to order multiple copies, please contact Dow Jones Reprints at 18008430008 or visit www.djreprints.com.
