Airline cabins could get even more cramped

Thinkstock

Airline cabins could get even more cramped
(Image credit: Thinkstock)

If the airlines have their way, the cabins of today will seem roomy compared to what is ahead.

The Aircraft Interiors Expo in Hamburg, Germany, this month featured dozens of exhibitors showcasing ways to squeeze in extra seats, the Los Angeles Times reports. Some of the concepts include seats that have passengers sitting face to face, lavatories that are designed in a way that allows for extra passengers in the back of the cabin, and seats that are installed staggered in a diagonal layout.

"There is no question that densification — adding more seats to each aircraft — is an ongoing trend, and there is no sign of it letting up any time soon," says Seth Kaplan, managing partner at Airline Weekly.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

One French company, Zodiac Airspace, has a new concept for short-haul flights: a row of three seats with one passenger facing forward, the next backward, and the third forward. The seat bottoms flip up so passengers can get in and out of the rows quickly, but there are two huge cons: no armrests and the seat cushions are very thin. Despite these drawbacks, the airlines were "very interested," according to Zodiac executive vice president Pierre-Antony Vastra. Better enjoy the barely padded seats we have now while you still can.

Continue reading for free

We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.

Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.

Catherine Garcia

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.